The development of culture of the USSR in the 1930s. A manual on the history of the fatherland

What is culture? There are many answers to this question. In a broad sense, culture is everything that is created by the mind and hands of man. There is material and spiritual culture, culture of work, life, etc. The main subject of our consideration is “culture and time.” We will talk primarily about those events, phenomena, cultural people who clearly reflected their era in its ideas and values, scientific and technical achievements, and artistic monuments.

In the first decades of the 20th century. Among the European intelligentsia there arose feelings of crisis and disintegration of the surrounding world, a premonition of imminent changes and even the end of the existing order of things. Then the Russian philosopher N.A. Berdyaev wrote an essay with the remarkable title “The End of Europe”, and the German O. Spengler wrote the book “The Decline of Europe” (literally translated - “The Decline of the Western World”), which became widely known after the World War. These works debunked rationally optimistic ideas about European history, faith in endless progress and the increasing welfare of mankind. Instead, ideas of a cultural and historical cycle and an inevitable change of cultures were put forward.

In artistic culture, the position of realism, which was the highest achievement of the 19th century, began to weaken more and more noticeably. Originating at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The new artistic movement received a name that emphasized its modernity - modernism. It represented different movements and groups that did not have a single ideological and artistic program. Common features were a departure from the traditions and ideals of previous art, as well as the search for new artistic forms and means.

A special place in the artistic culture of the late XIX - early XX centuries. took over the Art Nouveau style (note the difference between the concepts of “modern” and “modernism”), which spread in many European countries (in France - under the name “Art Nouveau”, in Germany - “Jugendstil”, etc.). It was based on the idea that art creates beauty and brings it into life, which in itself is not very good or attractive. One of the means to achieve this goal was considered to be a synthesis of different arts: architecture, decorative and applied arts, painting, graphics, etc. Art Nouveau masters also widely used combinations of elements of different styles: European and Oriental, modern and traditional. Particularly significant were the achievements of Art Nouveau in architecture, where unusual in appearance, elegant, and sometimes elaborate buildings with a convenient internal layout were created. However, for all its artistic expressiveness, Art Nouveau remained a style for the elite and soon gave way to other trends.

The most daring searches for new artistic forms and means of expression were carried out by the so-called avant-garde (the French word “avant-garde” means “advanced”) movements and groups. Poets here experimented with the forms and size of verse (one can recall, for example, the early work of V.V. Mayakovsky), artists - with the color and composition of paintings. The painters did not set out to depict any object close to reality; their paintings often had no plot at all. The decisive role was played by the visions and feelings of the artist himself. Fauvism (translated from French as “wild”), primitivism, expressionism, cubism, and abstractionism became well-known modernist movements during this period. Over the course of two or three decades, they changed and developed into other trends. Many major masters, whose names were associated with individual movements (for example, A. Matisse - with Fauvism, M. Chagall - with primitivism, P. Picasso - with Cubism), in fact “did not fit” into this narrow and rather conventional framework . They did not obey the canons of one movement or another, they improved their own style and manner of painting, which later became models. A noticeable phenomenon in the modernist movements of the early 20th century. became the work of V. Kandinsky, K. Malevich, N. Goncharova, L. Popova and other Russian artists.

Artistic culture of the 1920s–1930s

The World War and the events that followed it brought severe trials and losses to millions of people, shook the foundations of the social structure, and gave impetus to attempts at its revolutionary transformation. During this period, the contradictions that divided people and the common aspirations for freedom and justice came to light. This could not but be reflected in the culture of subsequent decades.

Writers of the “lost generation” occupied a prominent place in post-war literature: the German E. M. Remarque, the American E. Hemingway, the Englishman R. Aldington and others. They participated in the war and could not forget what they saw and experienced. Showing the life of their heroes in the war, they protested against the horrific extermination of people in its everyday life. At the same time, the reason for which the war was fought was called into question. The English poet R. Brooke wrote about this during the war years: “And if I die, just think that somewhere there is a piece of foreign land that has become England.” The anti-war orientation of the works of the writers of the “lost generation” caused different attitudes - support from some people and irritation from others. Thus, the Nazis used E. M. Remarque’s novel “All Quiet on the Western Front” as a reason to deprive the writer of German citizenship.

Unlike the writers of the “lost generation”, who were dominated by a feeling of regret about lost ideals and values, many figures of European culture saw in the turbulent events of the first decades of the 20th century. implementation of the most important social and political ideas. They were attracted by the active struggle of people against inequality and injustice, for social and national liberation. Such views were shared by the French writers A. Barbusse and R. Rolland, the German G. Mann, the American T. Dreiser and others. Their heroes did not find a place for themselves in bourgeois society. Some of them fought against this society, as in A. Barbusse’s novel “Fire,” while others, like Clyde Griffith from T. Dreiser’s “American Tragedy,” sought to make their way into it at any cost and died without achieving their goal.

In the literature and art of this direction, features characteristic of modern times have noticeably manifested themselves - the ideologization and politicization of culture. Many of the artists who belonged to it joined communist parties and were engaged in political and social activities. Representatives of revolutionary art in different countries united in unions and associations, such as the Workers' Council for the Arts in Germany (1918-1919), the Left Front in Czechoslovakia (since 1929), the Union of Proletarian Art in Japan ( 1929-1934) etc.

Some cultural masters who did not belong to any ideological or artistic associations or political parties turned to new social ideas, believing that they would help overcome the injustice and inhumanity of the existing system. Among them was one of the most brilliant and original writers of the 20th century. B. Brecht.

Bertolt Brecht (1898–1956) was born into a wealthy family. Already in his youth, he came to a spontaneous denial of the burgher, bourgeois way of life, which was reflected in his first plays. In his mature years, Brecht began studying Marxist literature. The events of 1929 - early 1930s in Germany, which he witnessed, strengthened his rejection of the existing social order. In 1933, after the Nazis came to power, he left Germany. Brecht became widely famous for his productions of his plays “The Threepenny Opera,” “Mother,” and others. In them, he partly used plots from the works of other authors (the play “The Beggar’s Opera” by the English playwright of the 18th century D. Gay and the novel “Mother” by M. Gorky) , but created original works with his own idea, style, language. They were distinguished by dynamic action, sharp dialogues, and included parable poems, songs, slogans and statements on the topic of the day. Thus, one of the characters in “The Threepenny Opera,” a robber-raider, declares in his defense: “What is a master key compared to a stock? What is raiding a bank compared to founding a bank?” Behind the paradox and mockery that the author often resorted to, there were hidden “eternal questions” about the life and death of a person, his ups and downs, dreams and failures. Next to the troublemaker artist stood the humanist artist. This last feature was especially clearly manifested in the plays “The Good Man from Szechwan” and “Mother Courage and Her Children” created by Brecht in the late 1930s and early 1940s.

History of the first decades of the 20th century. provided rich food for a special literary genre - social fiction. The authors of such works tried to present in circumstances they invented, outside of real place and time, events and models of social relations, the features of which they observed in the world around them. In 1920, E. Zamyatin wrote the science fiction novel “We,” which became one of the first creations in the dystopian genre (published abroad in 1924). Later, the novels of O. Huxley “Brave New World” (1932) and D. Orwell “1984” (1949) also belonged to this genre.

In the novel "We" the action takes place in a "mathematically perfect Unified State." The life of the heroes, designated by “numbers” instead of names, is strictly regulated at work and at home, in personal relationships and entertainment. Artistic creativity is considered in this society as a “public service”, and individual consciousness is considered a disease. The hero of D-503 rushes between the strict rules of the system and the human need for friendship and love. In the finale, he informs the Benefactor (the supreme leader of this society) about those who do not want to obey the existing order, about the “enemies of happiness,” including the woman he loves. Thus, he condemns them to torture and death, but remains faithful to the system. The novel seems to predict the features of the then emerging totalitarian societies.

A striking example of artistic prophecy was the novel by the Czech writer K. Capek “The War with the Newts.” It tells a fantastic story about how certain amphibious creatures, having come into contact with people, gradually capture more and more “living space”, and then, with the help of weapons received from people, begin a war aimed at destroying humanity. An entertaining story with elements of a brilliant parody of the society of that time suddenly became scary due to its resemblance to reality. This impression was strengthened by the fact that part of the narrative is constructed in the form of newspaper reports, similar in content to press publications of those years. K. Capek died in 1938, shortly before the outbreak of World War II, in which much of what he predicted came true. In this regard, one cannot help but recall the words of A.P. Chekhov: “A real writer is the same as an ancient prophet: he sees more clearly than ordinary people.”

In the visual arts of the 1920s-1930s, as well as in literature, new trends of both realistic and modernist orientation appeared. One of the most striking manifestations of innovation in realistic art was the Mexican school of monumental painting, created by artists D. Rivera, J. C. Orozco, D. A. Siqueiros and others.

The founders of the school were contemporaries and participants in the Mexican Revolution of 1910-1917. This shaped their attitude to life, to their people, and ideological positions. D. Siqueiros emphasized: “Our path was different, completely different from that of the artists of the European avant-garde...” Starting their creative activity, he and his comrades defined their main task as follows: “To create monumental and heroic art, humanistic and folk, focused on our great masters of the past and the extraordinary culture of pre-Hispanic America!” The implementation of these intentions was facilitated by the cultural policy of the first post-revolutionary governments, which attached great importance to the monumental propaganda of the ideas and gains of the liberation struggle of the peoples of Mexico. Young artists received orders to design administrative and public buildings. Monumental paintings appeared on the walls and facades of these buildings - frescoes reflecting historical and modern events. The artists denounced the war, the inhumane aspects of bourgeois society, and fascism. Their works combined emotionality, journalisticism and artistic expressiveness. The themes, images, and symbolism of the frescoes were deeply national; the masters of this school continued the traditions of the art of the Indians of Mexico. At the same time, they expressed the feelings of compassion and anger, shock and impulse for freedom inherent in all people. The technique of monumental painting invented by artists was also new to the art of that time.

Representatives of this school complemented their active artistic position with political activity. In the early 1920s, the Syndicate of Revolutionary Painters, Sculptors and Engravers was created, which declared the main task of art to be serving the cause of the revolution. The leaders of the Syndicate D. Siqueiros, D. Rivera, X. Guerrero were elected members of the Central Committee of the Mexican Communist Party. The illustrated newspaper Machete, published by the Syndicate, soon became the official organ of the Communist Party.

Significant changes occurred in the 1920s and 1930s in the modernist movement. Many of its representatives, having witnessed war and social upheaval, sought to escape reality and hide in their own world. Considering life to be cruel, uncontrollable and meaningless, they decided that art should not represent, explain or improve it. Moreover, art is irrational (not subject to reason). These ideas underlay the surrealism (“overrealism”) that emerged in the 1920s. Its creators argued that creativity is, first of all, a reflection of the artist’s subconscious feelings.

Surrealists most often depicted on their canvases certain fantasies, chaotic combinations of bodies and objects, often deliberately distorted and deformed. Denial of beauty and harmony, anti-aestheticism were characteristic features of this style. It was as if the transition from the mind to the subconscious, from the search for new forms to chaos, had been completed. The surrealists sought to shock, not S. Dali, the audience. Dream. 1937 not only for his creativity, but also for his eccentric, antisocial behavior. Their ideologist A. Breton stated: “The simplest surreal action is to go out into the street with a revolver in your hands and, as much as you can, shoot anywhere in the crowd.” One of the most famous surrealist artists, S. Dali, publicly called his method “critical-paranoid” (nevertheless, in the mid-1930s, the surrealists expelled Dali from their circle for the “overly academic” nature of his painting).

Culture in mass society

The formation of mass society in industrial countries in the 1920s and 1930s created conditions for the widespread dissemination of artistic culture. The positive thing was that works of art turned out to be more accessible to various layers and groups of the population and became part of public life. The costs, according to art connoisseurs, consisted of replacing unique, high-quality examples with serial, ordinary artistic products.

New trends visibly manifested themselves during this period in the art that creates the environment for people - architecture. Here, the trends of rational, constructivist architecture emerged, widely spreading in many countries, including Russia.

The emergence of new trends had both technological and social prerequisites. In construction technology, it was associated with the use of reinforced concrete structures, continuous glazing of walls, etc. The social order consisted of the need for widespread, mass urban development. If in the pre-war years architects focused on the design of administrative buildings, banks, and luxury mansions, now this list has been expanded with projects of multi-apartment residential buildings, university and school campuses, industrial buildings, and stadiums.

Many architects began creating residential complexes in which, along with standard residential buildings, there were public and domestic facilities. In some cases these were towns surrounded by park areas for representatives of the so-called middle class, in others - neighborhoods for workers. Projects of residential complexes received special support in the Soviet Union, where they were given an ideological justification: it was emphasized that this was “the opportunity to create a single powerful team that unites most public functions in a communal way.” According to such projects, communal houses, demonstration residential complexes with shops, kindergartens, laundries, etc. were built.

In rationalism and constructivism, simplicity and compliance of the forms and internal layout of the building with its purpose were given first place. A prominent representative of European rationalism was the French architect S. E. Le Corbusier (1887-1965). It was he who formulated the most laconic manifesto of the new movement: “A house is a machine for living.” Corbusier's buildings were raised above the ground on special support pillars, had a regular geometric shape, a well-thought-out layout, “ribbon” windows, and a flat roof intended for laying out a garden.

Factory in Rotterdam Arch. I. A. Brinkman and others 1928-1930

The famous Bauhaus school of rationalism was created by German architects led by V. Gropius. The Bauhaus style quickly acquired an international character.

Cinema became a mass art form in the 1920s and 1930s. This was the time of the formation of cinema; every year brought new artistic and technical discoveries. One of the peaks of world cinema during this period was the work of the outstanding actor and director Charles Chaplin.

Charles Spencer Chaplin (1889–1977) was born in London into an acting family and from his youth followed in the footsteps of his parents. As a young actor, he came to the United States, where he began directing comedy films at one of the studios in Los Angeles. In 1919, together with several actors and directors, he founded the independent film company United Artists. Chaplin's most famous films: "The Kid" (1920), "The Gold Rush" (1925), "City Lights" (1931), "Modern Times" (1936). Their hero is a small man in a bowler hat, oversized boots and a cane. It surprisingly coexisted external comedy, eccentric tricks and the sadness of a lonely person looking for warmth and sympathy. Watching his adventures, the audience laughed and cried. This is probably what brought Chaplin worldwide recognition.

The search for something new and significant achievements marked the first steps of Soviet cinema, which turned to themes of great social significance. The works of film director S. M. Eisenstein (1898-1948) gained international fame. His film “Battleship Potemkin” is included by film experts among the ten best films of all time.

In the late 1920s, the “Great Silent Man,” as cinema was called, began to speak (the first sound film was released in the United States in 1927). Silent film stars, who did not have the necessary acting technique and voice abilities, gave way to a new generation of actors, many of whom came from the theater. The acting has become more natural and understandable to the audience. Instead of the previous musical accompaniment, music began to play in films, helping to reveal the artistic intent and emphasize the dynamics of the action. Many famous composers wrote music for sound films. One of the highest examples in this field, which received international recognition, was S. S. Prokofiev’s music for the film “Alexander Nevsky” (1938).

Film production in the United States has gained particular momentum. The 1920s and 1930s have gone down in history as the “golden age” of Hollywood (this film city arose in the outskirts of Los Angeles shortly before the First World War). It has become an international film center with great financial and technical capabilities. Actors and directors from many countries came here. But almost unlimited material possibilities did not provide absolute creative freedom. The work of film creators was strictly regulated by contracts with film studios. The owners of the “dream factory” (as Hollywood was called) knew well what kind of product they wanted to get.

In 1930, Hollywood adopted a mandatory Production Code for all studios. It said:

“Every American film should argue that the United States way of life is the only and best way for any person. One way or another, every film should be optimistic and show the little person that somewhere and someday he will grab his happiness by the tail. The film should not turn the dark sides of our lives inside out, and should not inflame decisive and dynamic passions.”

A notable feature of the culture of this period was the widespread dissemination of music. It sounded on the radio and in gramophone recordings. Partly it was classical music - opera and symphonic recordings (among the first, unique recordings of the great opera singers E. Caruso and F. I. Chaliapin were made). Symphony orchestras appeared on the radio. But pop and dance music was especially popular. This was the heyday of jazz, which originated in the United States and then spread to many countries. It was based on the rhythms of Negro folk music and improvisation. During these same years, the musical was born - a special type of performance that combined speech, singing and dancing.

Totalitarianism and culture

A special situation arose in the 1920-1930s in the culture of countries in which totalitarian regimes were established. B. Mussolini, speaking at the fascist party congress in 1925, declared: “We want to fascist the nation... Fascism must become a way of life. There must be Italians of the fascist era, just as there were, for example, Italians of the Renaissance.” Culture, like other spheres of social life, came under the control of the state. In Italy, the State Academy and the National Syndicate of Fascist Fine Arts were created.

In Germany, the Ministry of Public Education and Propaganda, headed by J. Goebbels, organized the Imperial Chamber of Culture, which included seven sections (press, radio, cinema, literature, theater, musical and visual arts). Persons who were not members of the chamber were essentially deprived of the right to engage in artistic activities.

The Nazis waged a “battle for culture” using the harshest methods. Already in 1933, exhibitions began to be organized under Roman civilization with very expressive titles: “Signs of Decay in Art”, “1938 Exhibition of Degenerate Art”, at which the works of modernist artists were declared “degenerate”. Almost 16 thousand works by foreign masters were confiscated from German museums: V. Van Gogh, A. Matisse, P. Picasso, V. Kandinsky, M. Chagall and others, as well as German artists whose style did not meet the tastes of the Nazis. Sculptural monuments were destroyed, for example the works of E. Barlach, dedicated to those who died in the war. They were declared "offensive to the national feelings of the Germans." In architecture, rationalist movements came under fire, and the world-famous Bauhaus school was closed. For racial reasons, jazz music was prohibited (in the USSR it was not accepted for another reason - as a manifestation of an alien bourgeois culture).

What was offered in return for the unwanted culture that was being expelled? First of all, what corresponded to the dominant ideology. Monumentalism reigned in art, which was supposed to reflect the greatness of the new society and the “superman” it generated.

An illustrative building was the architectural complex in Nuremberg (30 sq. km in area), intended for holding Nazi congresses and celebrations. It included the Palace of Congresses, a stadium with 405 thousand seats with stands over 80 m high, etc. The scale of the buildings corresponded to monumental sculptures of heroes of German history, athletes with “Nordic features”.

In German painting, having supplanted modernist searches and “streams of the subconscious,” the national-romantic style took hold. Preference was given to the themes “German soil”, “German labor”, “German mother”, “German soldier - defender of the Motherland”. Portraits and narrative paintings depicting leaders occupied a special place in painting and sculpture. The ideologists of totalitarianism, no less than American filmmakers, imagined the possibilities of influencing people in cinema. The canons for propaganda documentaries and feature films were also established here, not excluding entertainment films intended for mass audiences.

References:
Aleksashkina L.N. / General History. XX - early XXI centuries.

Why in the history of Soviet culture is the period of the 1970s called the “Cultural Revolution”? Lesson assignment.

Economic transformations in the USSR set the task of increasing the educational level of the population. The pedagogical experiments of the 20s were unsuitable for this. In 1930, the transition to universal primary education began, in 1937 - to the seven-year plan. Lessons returned to school , a solid schedule, grades, etc. New programs and textbooks were created. In 1934, the teaching of history and geography was restored, and then other disciplines. 1. Development of education. School on the collective farm named after Karl Marx. Kabardino-Balkaria.

20 thousand new schools were opened in the country. In the 30s. In the USSR, there were 35 million students. According to the 1939 census, literacy was 87.4%. Secondary specialized and higher education developed rapidly. In terms of the number of students and students, the USSR took 1st place in the world. Circulation books in 1937 amounted to 700 million copies. They were published in 110 languages ​​of the peoples of the USSR. 1. Development of education. Rural school for adults.

The development of science in the USSR proceeded under powerful ideological pressure. Those who disagreed with this approach were subjected to persecution and repression. In biological science, a group led by T. Lysenko persecuted Soviet geneticists - N. Vavilov, N. Koltsov, A. Serebrovsky. Lysenko explained his actions by defending Darwinism and Michurin’s theory from “bourgeois science.” Subsequently, many geneticists were repressed, and genetics itself was prohibited. 2. Science under ideological pressure. D. Nalbandyan. Session of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

Stalin paid great attention to historical science. History began to be interpreted as the history of class struggle. In 1938, “A Short Course on the History of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks” was published, edited personally by Stalin. He exalted Stalin and actually became the official interpretation of the foundations of Marxism-Leninism and the history of the CPSU (b). On its basis, unofficial schools in historical science were destroyed, irreparable damage was caused to it. 2. Science under ideological pressure. S. Vavilov, N. Koltsov, A. Serebrovsky

Despite ideological pressure, representatives of the natural sciences were able to achieve outstanding success. S. Vavilov (optics), A. Ioffe (crystal physics), P. Kapitsa (microphysics), I. Kurchatov (nuclear physics) and others enriched world science. Chemists N. Zelinsky, A. Bakh, S. Lebedev made fundamental discoveries in the field of obtaining artificial substances and organic food products. 3. Achievements of Soviet science. A. Ioffe and P. Kapitsa

Soviet biologists N. achieved worldwide recognition. Vavilov, V. Pustovoy, V. Williams and others. Significant successes were achieved in mathematics, astronomy, mechanics, physiology. Geology and geography gained enormous development during this period. This was associated with the beginning of the industrial development of Siberia and the Far East .New deposits of minerals were discovered: oil in the Volga region, coal in the Moscow region and Kuzbass, iron in the Urals, etc. 3. Advances of Soviet science. V.S. Pustovoit

In the 30s The elimination of differences of opinion in artistic culture was completed. From now on, art must follow one direction - socialist realism and show life as it should be in the minds of party leaders. Art began to plant myths and create an illusion, that the happy time had already arrived. Using it, the authorities skillfully manipulated public opinion and directed it in the right direction. 4. Socialist realism. P. Belov. Hourglass.

Cinema made a huge contribution to the formation of a new consciousness. The documentary chronicle covered current events in the right light. It owed much of its success to outstanding directors - D. Vertov, E. Tisse, E. Schub. In 1931 in the USSR The first sound film was staged, “The Road to Life.” The second color film was “Grunya Kornakova.” The historical films, Chapaev, We are from Kronstadt, and the trilogy about Maxim, were especially popular. 5.Soviet cinema. Still from the film “Chapaev”

5.Soviet cinema. I. Ilyinsky and L. Orlova in the film “Volga-Volga”. The musical films “Volga-Volga”, “Jolly Guys”, “Pig Farm and the Shepherd”, etc. were especially popular among viewers. Children’s cinema began to take shape - “Timur and his team”, “Golden Key”, “The Lonely Sail Whitens.” On the eve of the war, a whole series of patriotic films appeared—Alexander Nevsky, Peter I, Minin and Pozharsky. The most famous directors were S. Eisenstein, N. Eck, G. Alesandrov, I. Pyryev, V. Pudovkin.

The development of music was associated with the names of S. Prokofev, D. Shostakovich, T. Khrennikov, I. Dunaevsky. Musical groups appeared - the Great Symphony Orchestra, the Beethoven Quartet, etc. When assessing the work of composers, the tastes of the leaders played a huge role, so D. Shestakovich was subjected to harsh criticism. Song creativity reached its peak. The works of I. Dunaevsky , B. Mokrousov, M. Blanter, and the Pockrass brothers were known throughout the country. 6.Music and painting. I. Dunaevsky and V. Lebedev-Kumach.

6.Music and painting. B.Ioganson. Interrogation of communists. In fine art, the main thing was not the artist’s skill, but the ideological orientation of the plot, compliance with the principles of socialist realism. His classic was B. Ioganson, whose painting “Interrogation of the Communists” was awarded with all possible awards. A. Deineka, Yu. Pimenov, M. Nesterov. M. Saryan, P. Konchalovsky, A. were able to establish themselves in the landscape genre. Lentulov.

7.Theater.Literature. M.I. Kalinin among the awarded writers. Strict censorship left its mark on the quality of literature. Many ephemera works were published. Nevertheless, many talented writers worked during this period. M. Gorky writes “The Life of Klim Samgin”, “Yegor Bulychev and Others”. A. Tolstoy finished “Walking in Torment” and begins work on the novel “Peter I”. A huge contribution to the history of literature was made by M. Sholokhov, M. Bulgakov, V. Kaverin, A. Platonov and others.

In the late 20s. plays by Soviet playwrights began to take hold on the stages of Soviet theaters. “The Man with a Gun” by N. Pogodin, “Optimistic Tragedy” by V. Vishnevsky, “Tanya” by A. Arbuzov – made up the “golden fund” of the repertoire of many theaters. M. Gorky's plays were successfully performed throughout the country. Soviet people were introduced to culture thanks to the rapid growth in the number of theaters, museums, philharmonic societies, and libraries. Talent shows were held throughout the country. 7.Theater.Literature. B. Shchukin as Lenin in the play “Man with a Gun”

In the 1930s, a powerful cultural shift undoubtedly occurred in the USSR. If the social revolution destroyed the semi-medieval class in the country, dividing society into “people” and “tops,” then cultural transformations over two decades moved it along the path of bridging the civilizational gap in the everyday life of many tens of millions of people. In an unimaginably short period of time, people’s material capabilities ceased to be a significant barrier between them and at least elementary culture; inclusion in it began to depend much less on the socio-professional status of people. Both in scale and in pace, these changes can indeed be considered a nationwide “cultural revolution.”

However, cultural transformations, firstly, turned out to be broad, but very poor. They gave rise, in essence, to a “semi-culture” or even a quasi-culture, based on the bizarre spiritual marginality of millions and millions of people. But this is not a mistake or the fault of the Soviet government of those years - it could not have been otherwise: the grandeur of the scale and the lightning speed of the pace do not ensure a high quality of culture. Secondly, culture was “imposed” on the people: by strict regulation of rural life - by the collective farm system, and urban life - by the “mobilization capabilities” of factory shock construction projects, by the organizational and propaganda onslaught of state “coverage” plans, Komsomol campaigns, and trade union competitions. Thus, the germination of the need for culture was essentially replaced by the dictates of social structures and the pressure of the social atmosphere. This was already a historical mistake, generated by confidence in the omnipotence of the “revolutionary onslaught.”

The zeal with which the system, hyperpoliticized by the revolution, sought to create a “new type of culture” in our country already received a “Marxist” theoretical justification in the 30s. These “basic features” were “established”; communist ideology and party spirit, collectivism, internationalism and patriotism, leadership of the CPSU and the Soviet state in the systematic development of culture. This is precisely what was declared to be “a new step in the spiritual development of mankind,” its “peak.”

In our country there was a violent break with cultural and historical tradition. The fight against the “vices of the old culture” led to a significant impoverishment and, in many respects, destruction of this tradition.

1. Reform in the field of education and science

The systematic efforts of the Soviet state led to the fact that the proportion of the literate population in Russia grew steadily. By 1939, the number of literate people in the RSFSR was already 89 percent. Since the 1930/31 school year, compulsory primary education was introduced. In addition, by the thirties, the Soviet school gradually moved away from many revolutionary innovations that had not justified themselves: the class-lesson system was restored, subjects that had previously been excluded from the program as “bourgeois” (primarily history, general and domestic) were returned to the schedule. Since the beginning of the 30s. The number of educational institutions involved in the training of engineering, technical, agricultural and pedagogical personnel grew rapidly. In 1936, the All-Union Committee for Higher Education was created.

The 1930s turned out to be difficult for Russian science. On the one hand, large-scale research programs are being launched in the USSR, new research institutes are being created: in 1934 S.I. Vavilov founded the Physics Institute of the Academy of Sciences named after. P.N. Lebedev (FIAN), at the same time the Institute of Organic Chemistry was created in Moscow P.L. Kapitsa created the Institute of Physical Problems, and in 1937 the Institute of Geophysics was created. Physiologist I.P. continues to work. Pavlov, breeder I.V. Michurin. The work of Soviet scientists resulted in numerous discoveries in both fundamental and applied fields. In particular, this period saw significant discoveries in the study of the Arctic (O.Yu. Schmidt, I.D. Papanin), the development of space flights and jet propulsion (K.E. Tsiolkovsky, F.A. Tsandler). Historical science is being revived. As was said, history teaching is being resumed in secondary and high schools. The Research Institute of History is being created at the USSR Academy of Sciences.

At the same time, Stalin's totalitarianism created serious obstacles to the normal development of scientific knowledge. The autonomy of the Academy of Sciences was eliminated. In 1934, it was transferred from Leningrad to Moscow and subordinated to the Council of People's Commissars. The establishment of administrative methods of managing science led to the fact that many promising areas of research (for example, genetics, cybernetics) were frozen for many years at the arbitrariness of incompetent party functionaries. In an atmosphere of general denunciation and growing repression, academic discussions often ended in violence, when one of the opponents, having been accused (albeit unfoundedly) of political unreliability, was not only deprived of the opportunity to work, but was subjected to physical destruction. The repressions caused heavy damage to the country's intellectual potential. The old pre-revolutionary intelligentsia, most of whose representatives conscientiously served the Soviet state, suffered especially hard. As a result of falsified revelations of a number of “sabotage counter-revolutionary organizations” (“Shakhtinsky Affair”, the “Industrial Party” trial) the masses were inflamed with distrust and suspicion towards representatives of the intelligentsia, which as a result made it easier to deal with undesirables and extinguished any manifestation of free thought. In the social sciences, the “Short Course on the History of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)”, published in 1938 under the editorship of I.V., acquired decisive importance. Stalin. The personality cult of Stalin was established in the country.

Features of the development of literature

The situation in the literature has changed significantly. In the early 30s. The existence of free creative circles and groups came to an end. By the resolution of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks of April 23, 1932 “On the restructuring of literary and artistic organizations,” RAPP was liquidated. And in 1934, at the First All-Union Congress of Soviet Writers, the “Union of Writers” was organized, which all people engaged in literary work were forced to join. The Writers' Union has become an instrument of total government control over the creative process. M. Gorky stood at the origins of this organization, but his chairmanship did not last long. In addition to the “Union of Writers”, other “creative” unions were organized: “Union of Artists”, “Union of Architects”, “Union of Composers”. A period of uniformity was beginning in Soviet art.

Having carried out organizational unification, the Stalinist regime set about stylistic and ideological unification. In 1936, a “discussion about formalism” began. During the “discussion”, through harsh criticism, the persecution of those representatives of the creative intelligentsia began, whose aesthetic principles differed from “socialist realism”, which was becoming generally binding. Symbolists, futurists, impressionists, imagists, etc. came under a barrage of offensive attacks. They were accused of “formalistic quirks”, that their art was not needed by the Soviet people, that it was rooted in soil hostile to socialism. Among the “outsiders” were composer D. Shostakovich, director S. Eisenstein, writers B. Pasternak, Y. Olesha and others. Articles appeared in the press: “Confusion instead of music,” “Ballet falsehood,” “About dirty artists.” Essentially, the “fight against formalism” had the goal of destroying all those whose talent was not put to the service of power. Many artists were repressed.

As already mentioned, the defining style in literature, painting and other forms of art was the so-called “socialist realism”. This style had little in common with true realism. Despite the external “liveness”, he did not reflect reality in its present form, but sought to pass off as reality what should only have been from the point of view of official ideology. The function of educating society within the strictly defined framework of communist morality was imposed on art. Labor enthusiasm, universal devotion to the ideas of Lenin-Stalin, Bolshevik adherence to principles - this is how the heroes of the works of official art of that time lived. The reality was much more complex and generally far from the proclaimed ideal.

The limited ideological framework of socialist realism became a significant obstacle to the development of Soviet literature. Nevertheless, in the 30s. Several major works appeared that entered the history of Russian culture. Perhaps the most important figure in the official literature of those years was Mikhail Aleksandrovich Sholokhov (1905-1984). An outstanding work is his novel “Quiet Don,” which tells about the Don Cossacks during the First World War and the Civil War. The novel “Virgin Soil Upturned” is dedicated to collectivization on the Don. Remaining, at least outwardly, within the boundaries of socialist realism, Sholokhov managed to create a three-dimensional picture of the events that took place, to show the tragedy of fratricidal hostility among the Cossacks that unfolded on the Don in the post-revolutionary years. Sholokhov was favored by Soviet criticism. His literary work was awarded the State and Lenin Prizes, he was twice awarded the title of Hero of Socialist Labor, and he was elected academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Sholokhov's work received worldwide recognition: he was awarded the Nobel Prize for his writing achievements.

M.A. Bulgakov, without any hope of publication, begins to write his best novel, “The Master and Margarita.” Work on the novel continued until the writer's death. This work was published only in 1966. The fate of Osip Emilievich Mandelstam (1891-1938) is tragic. A poet of extraordinary strength and great visual precision, he was among those writers who, having accepted the October Revolution in their time, could not get along in Stalinist society. In 1938 he was repressed.

In the 30s Many Russian writers remained behind the Iron Curtain, who, despite the lack of a readership, the unsettled life, and spiritual breakdown, continue to work. Their works convey a longing for a bygone Russia (Bunin’s collection of short stories “Dark Alleys.” In 1933 he was awarded the Nobel Prize).

Fine arts, architecture, theater and cinema in the 1930s.

New associations are appearing in the spirit of the times - the Association of Artists of Proletarian Russia, the Association of Proletarian Artists.

The works of B.V. Ioganson became classics of socialist realism in fine art. In 1933, the painting “Interrogation of Communists” was painted. In contrast to the abundance of “paintings” that appeared at that time, depicting and glorifying the Leader or deliberately optimistic paintings like “Collective Farm Holiday” by S.V. Gerasimov, Ioganson’s work is distinguished by great artistic power - the unbending will of people doomed to death, which the artist masterfully managed to convey, touches the viewer regardless of political beliefs. Ioganson also painted large paintings “At the Old Ural Factory” and “Speech by V.I. Lenin at the 3rd Komsomol Congress." In the 30s, K.S. continued to work. Petrov-Vodkin, P.P. Konchalovsky, A.A. Deineka.

The pinnacle of the development of socialist realism sculpture was the composition “Worker and Collective Farm Woman” by Vera Ignatievna Mukhina. The sculptural group was made by V.I. Mukhina for the Soviet pavilion at the World Exhibition in Paris in 1937.

In architecture in the early 30s. Constructivism continues to be the leading one, widely used for the construction of public and residential buildings. By the end of the 30s. the functional simplicity of constructivism begins to give way to neoclassicism. Lush stucco molding, huge columns with pseudo-classical capitals come into fashion, gigantomania and a tendency towards deliberate richness of decoration, often bordering on bad taste, appear. This style is sometimes called the “Stalinist Empire style”.

A distinctive feature in the field of theater was the formation of innovative activities of the Meyerhold Theater, Moscow Art Theater and others. Theater named after Vs. Meyerhold worked under the guidance of director V.E. Meyerhold. Characteristic of his art in the early 1930s. the desire to combine innovative experiments (“constructivist” productions of “The Magnanimous Cuckold” by F. Crommelynck and “The Death of Tarelkin” by A.V. Sukhovo-Kobylin, both) with the democratic traditions of the common public square theater was especially noticeable in the extremely free, frankly modernized director’s composition “Forests” » A.N. Ostrovsky; the game was played in a buffoonish, farcical manner.

Cinema is developing rapidly. The number of films being shot is increasing. New opportunities opened up with the advent of sound cinema. In 1938, the film by S.M. was released. Eisenstein "Alexander Nevsky". ("Merry Guys", 1934, "Circus" 1936, "Volga-Volga" 1938), idealized scenes of the life of Ivan Pyryev ("Tractor Drivers", 1939, "Pig Farm and the Shepherd") create an atmosphere of expectation of a "happy life". The film of the brothers (in reality, only namesakes, “brothers” is a kind of pseudonym) G.N. was extremely popular. and S.D. Vasiliev - “Chapaev” (1934).

In 1926, 43% of people aged 9-49 and most older people were illiterate. In 1927, there were 119 thousand schools in the country, and there were 1,200 universities and technical schools. IN 1930 The task of carrying out universal compulsory primary education and eliminating illiteracy was set. In accordance with these decisions in the USSR with 1930-1931 gg. Compulsory primary (four-year) education was introduced everywhere for children, as well as adolescents who had not completed primary education.

In industrial cities, the task was set to implement universal education within the scope of a seven-year school. As a result, according to the All-Union Population Census on January 17, 1939, the percentage of the literate population over the age of 9 reached 81.2 (men - 90.8, women - 72.6). There were 152 thousand schools in the USSR. The system of secondary specialized and higher education developed rapidly. In 1940, there were 4,600 universities operating in the country, by the end second Five-year plan, the Soviet Union came out on top in the world in terms of the number of students.

Significant results have been achieved in the natural and technical sciences.
A major achievement of chemical science was the development by 1928 of S.V. Lebedev's original method for producing synthetic rubber from ethyl alcohol.
Serious discoveries were made in nuclear physics: D.V. Skobeltsyn developed a method for detecting cosmic rays, D.D. Ivanenko put forward the theory of the structure of the atomic nucleus from protons and neutrons, A.E. Ioffe invented a multi-plate insulator, N.N. Semenov successfully worked on problems in the theory of chain reactions.
Research by K.E. Tsiolkovsky won the priority of the USSR in the development of theoretical problems of space exploration. IN 1930 The world's first jet engine running on gasoline and compressed air, designed by F.A., was built. Zander.

In 1929, the All-Union Academy of Agricultural Sciences named after. IN AND. Lenin(VASKhNIL) with 12 institutes (president - N.I. Vavilov). In the same year, the Belarusian Academy of Sciences was created. By the end of the first five-year plan, the Ural, Far Eastern and Transcaucasian branches, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan bases of the USSR Academy of Sciences were organized; in 1935, instead of the Transcaucasian branch, three new branches were created; Azerbaijani, Armenian and Georgian.

IN years During the second five-year plan, new physics and technology institutes were created in Kharkov, Dnepropetrovsk, Sverdlovsk, and Tomsk. In total, by 1937, the country had 867 research institutes and their branches, employing 37,600 researchers.

Until his death in 1936, the famous Russian physiologist I.P. continued his research. Pavlov. Great success was achieved by the outstanding breeder I.V. Michurin. The Institute of Genetics of the USSR Academy of Sciences and the All-Union Institute of Plant Growing (VIR) (headed by N.I. Vavilov) played a prominent role in the development of Soviet and world science.
However development science slowed down repression. Many outstanding scientists were repressed, including N.I. Vavilov, S.P. Korolev et al.

The achievements of the social sciences were much more modest.
The role of historical education and historical research has increased. In 1934, the teaching of history at universities was restored, the Historical and Archaeographic Institute was created, in 1933 - the Historical Commission, in 1936, in connection with the liquidation of the Communist Academy and the transfer of its institutions and institutes to the Academy of Sciences, the Institute of History was formed. In the 30s years History teaching is being developed in secondary and higher schools.

A more tragic situation is developing in the field of literature and art. In April 1932, the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks adopted a resolution “On the restructuring of literary and artistic organizations.” Instead of numerous literary groups, it was considered expedient to create a single Union of Writers of the USSR.
The repressions of the 30s also affected writers, primarily Rapp’s ideologists (L. Averbakh, V. Kirshon, I. Grossman-Roshchin, G. Gorbachev, G. Lelevich, etc.); out of more than 50 writers who belonged to literary groups that survived until the 30s, three were repressed - O. Mandelstam, S. Tretyakov, I. Babel; The “peasant” writers (N. Klyuev, S. Klychkov, P. Oreshin, I. Kasatkin, I. Pribludny, P. Vasiliev, V. Nasedkin, Pimen Karpov) all died except Karpov.

However, even in these years significant works were created: “Quiet Don” and the 1st part of “Virgin Soil Upturned” by M.A. Sholokhov, “The Master and Margarita” by M.A. Bulgakov, poetry and poems by A.A. Akhmatova, P.N. Vasilyeva, N.A. Klyueva, O.E. Mandelstam, M.I. Tsvetaeva, novels and stories by A.M. Gorky, A.N. Tolstoy, N.A. Ostrovsky, A.A. Fadeev, I. Ilf and E. Petrova and others.
In these years Outstanding works of Soviet cinema are being created.
A. Deineka, M. Nesterov, P. Korin, M. Grekov, P. Konchalovsky, Yu. Pimenov, V. Andreev, V. Mukhina, I. Shadr work in painting and sculpture; in music - B. Asafiev, R. Glier, Y. Shaporin, D. Shostakovich and others.

The emergence of a new culture in the 1930s. The turn to patriotism in the mid-1930s (in culture, art and literature). The first congress of Soviet writers and its significance. Socialist realism as a new artistic method. Contradictions in its development and implementation.
In the public consciousness of the thirties, faith in socialist ideals and the enormous authority of the party began to be combined with “leadership.” Social cowardice and fear of breaking out from the mainstream have spread among wide sections of society. The essence of the class approach to social phenomena was strengthened by the cult of personality of Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin. The principles of class struggle are also reflected in the artistic life of the country. Thus, by the mid-thirties, Soviet national culture had developed into a rigid system with its own sociocultural values: in philosophy, aesthetics, morality, language, everyday life, and science. The values ​​of official culture were dominated by loyalty to the cause of the party and the Government, Patriotism, hatred of class enemies, cult love for the leaders of the proletariat, labor discipline, law-abidingness and internationalism. All literary and artistic figures were united into single unified unions. From August 17 to August 31, 1934, the first writers' congress took place. “Socialist realism” was declared the creative method of Soviet literature and art. This term first appeared on May 25, 1932 on the pages of the Literary Gazette, and a few months later its principles were proposed as fundamental for all Soviet art at Stalin’s mysterious meeting with Soviet writers at Gorky’s apartment (October 26, 1932). At this meeting the foundations for the future organization of writers were also laid. Thus, literature was assigned the role of an educational tool, and nothing more. One single artistic method, socialist realism, became established. Acting as the “main creative method” of Soviet culture, socialist realism prescribed the content and structural principles of the work to artists, suggesting the existence of a “new type of consciousness” that emerged as a result of the establishment of Marxism-Leninism. Socialist realism was recognized once and for all as given, the only true and most perfect creative method. This definition of social realism was based on the Stalinist definition of writers as “engineers of human souls.” Thus, artistic culture and art were given an instrumental character, that is, they were assigned the role of an instrument for the formation of a “new man.” After the establishment of Stalin's personality cult, pressure on culture and persecution of dissidents intensified. Literature and art were put at the service of communist ideology and propaganda. In the literature of the 30s. Along with the names of A. M. Gorky (who returned to the country after emigrating), A. N. Tolstoy, and other writers with pre-revolutionary fame, new names appeared - M. A. Sholokhov (“Quiet Don”), M. S. Shaginyan (“ Hydrocentral"), V. P. Kataev ("Time, forward!"), I. Ilf and E. Petrov ("Twelve Chairs", "Golden Calf"). Soviet children's literature was formed, represented by the works of S. Ya. Marshak, K. I. Chukovsky, A. P. Gaidar, B. S. Zhitkov and others. A feature of fine art was the predominance of ceremonial painting, as well as paintings on the themes of revolution and civil war , building socialism. Recognized masters of this direction were S. V. Gerasimov (“Collective Farm Holiday”), K. S. Petrov-Vodkin (“Death of a Commissar”), A. A. Deineka (“Defense of Petrograd”), M. M. Grekov (“Defense of Petrograd”) Trumpeters of the First Cavalry Army"), B.V. Ioganson ("Interrogation of Communists"). The musical life of the country was inextricably linked with the names of the largest composers S. S. Prokofiev, D. D. Shostakovich, A. I. Khachaturian, T. N. Khrennikov, D. B. Kabalevsky, I. O. Dunaevsky and others. In cinema a technical revolution took place - domestic film and film equipment appeared, a series of large film studios opened. The first Soviet sound film was N. V. Ek’s film “The Road to Life.” The main theme of the cinema was the life of Soviet people, their participation in the events of the revolution (“Baltic Deputy” by I. E. Kheifits and A. G. Zarkhi; “October” by S. M. Eisenstein; “Lenin in October” and “Lenin in 1918” "M. I. Romm), civil war ("We are from Kronstadt" by E. L. Dzigan; trilogy about Maxim by G. M. Kozintsev and L. Z. Trauberg; "Chapaev" by S. and G. Vasiliev), industrialization and collectivization, development of remote areas of the country (“Seven Brave”, “Komsomolsk” by S. A. Gerasimov). The first musical comedies “Jolly Fellows” and “Volga-Volga” (G.V. Alexandrov), historical films “Peter the Great” (V.M. Petrov), “Alexander Nevsky” (S.M. Eisenstein) were published. Thus, in the 1920-30s. The country has achieved significant success in the development of science, education, and culture. Illiteracy of the bulk of the population was eliminated. A unified system of national education has taken shape. A new engineering, technical and creative intelligentsia was formed. Major discoveries were made in fundamental areas of science, and technical thought was developed. At the same time, culture, science and education were placed under state control. Many representatives of science, culture and art were repressed, and some brilliant works of art never reached the reader and viewer (novels by M. A. Bulgakov’s “The Master and Margarita”, A. P. Platonov’s “Juvenile Sea”, “The Pit”, “Chevengur”; paintings by P. N. Filonov, K. S. Malevich, etc.).