Wednesday, November 16, 2011

Outline 1.3

I ) The Thaw and Refreeze
1.      The Thaw
a.       Begins with Khrushchev’s Secret Speech
b.      Release of political prisoners
c.       Culminates in publication of One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovish
d.      Solzhenitsyn novel exposing the brutality of labor camps

2.      The Refreeze
a.       Brezhnev and other party leaders felt the Khrushchev had gone too far in denouncing Stalin
b.      There was discussion of a partial rehabilitation of Stalin
c.       Literature that was acceptable under Khrushchev was no longer acceptable.
                                                               i.      Solzhenitsyn’s Cancer Ward could no longer be published in 1966, although there had been plans for it. (Jacoby, 70)
d.      The re-freeze came to head with the trial of Sinyavsky and Daniel
                                                               i.      Sinyavsky and Daniel were two Soviet writers arrested and put on trial for publishing their works abroad
1.      There was actually no law prohibiting this.
                                                             ii.      The two writers were given excessive sentences
                                                           iii.      Many observers viewed it as the return of the Stalinist show trials
                                                           iv.      It confirmed what many dissidents feared-there was a crackdown. (Reddaway)
II )Rise of Dissident Media
1.      The White Book
a.       Ginzburg compiled trial documents and related information for the Sinyavsky and Daniel trial.
b.      Circulated in samizdat
c.       Ginzburg gave a copy of it to the KGB and bravely claimed that he had done nothing illegal as he did not “slander” the Soviet state.
                                                               i.      There was no law specifically prohibiting free speech. However, the state did make generous use of Articles 70 and 190 which outlawed libeling the state.

2.     “The Chronicle of Current Events”
a.       Underground newspaper published by a small group of dissidents, inspired by The White Book.
                                                               i.      It reported on trials, searches, conditions in labor camps, but very carefully did not comment on the news.
1.      It followed the model laid out by Ginzburg that reporting events as they happened was legal.
                                                             ii.      The staff of “The Chronicle” had to keep their identities and production schedule a secret for their own personal protection and to prevent KGB interference in publication.
1.      This created an internal dilemma for many involved because it was a newspaper devoted to openness.
b.      How it was reported
                                                               i.      Made use of the dissident network
1.      People going back and forth from labor camps.
2.      Taking secret notes at trials.
3.      In Issue 5 “The Chronicle” printed specific instructions for how to give them information.
a.       “Pass it forward.”-chain letter type deal
c.       How it was published
                                                               i.      Samizdat or “self-published”
1.      Dissidents typed out copies of “The Chronicle,”  and passed them along. Recipients would type more copies and pass them along.
a.       Hopkins argues that “The Chronicle’s” typists are it’s unsung heroes.
b.      Typing was rough manual work and it also came with great fear that the KGB could burst in at any moment.
2.      History of samizdat
a.       Began with literature during the age of socialist realism.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Socialist realism was the official literary doctrine. Works not following this doctrine were not published.
b.      Samizdat allowed writers to reclaim the realm of writing and publishing from the government.
3.      Samizdat became integral to the dissident movement.
a.       It was one of the few realms for open discussion.
b.      Bukovsky said he would build a monument to the typewriter.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Dissidents often speak of their typewriters with an almost messianic tone.
                                                                                                                                     ii.      The type writers gave them back the voice that the par had censored.
                                                                                                                                   iii.      Alexeyevna said that typing parties helped to establish trust among the dissidents.
c.       Meerson-Aksenov-“awakening of the conscious of Soviet society.”      
                                                                                                                                       i.      No longer would atrocities be hidden.
                                                                                                                                     ii.      Samizdat encouraged open discussion, even if it took place on onion skin paper.

3.     Foreign Publications of “The Chronicle”
a.       Besides samizdat, dissidents made use of “tamizdat,” literally published there.
                                                               i.      Like samizdat, this form of publication was frequently used to publish works that were not approved for the Soviet Union.
1.      The most notable instance is Pasternak’s Dr. Zhivago.
2.      These texts were then often smuggled back into the Soviet Union.
a.       The interview with Sinyavsky details the process.
b.      As dissidents began to emigrate, copies of “The Chronicle” began to be available all over the world, most notably in New York and London where English language translations were available.  Hopkins explores this issue thoroughly in his book on “The Chronicle.”
                                                               i.      London
1.      Max Hayward translated issue no. 5 in 1968.
2.      Peter Reddaway became involved and compiled the first 11 issues in an annotated anthology Uncensored Russia (1972)
3.      Amnesty International London also published translated copies of “The Chronicle” beginning in 1971.
a.       Circulation reached
                                                             ii.      New York
1.      Chalidze (a dissident) was exiled while in NY in 1972
a.       This coincided with “The Chronicle’s” decision to stop publishing due to KGB pressure.
b.      Chalidze with financial backing from NY businessman Ed Kline began publishing a version of “The Chronicle” in English and Russian.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Relied on sources in and out of Soviet Union
c.       When “The Chronicle” began publishing again in 1974, it continued printing
                                                                                                                                       i.      Could get info to U.S. leaders faster
                                                                                                                                     ii.      Also printed up to 1,200 copies of each issue. Most went to Soviet Union
II ) Rise of Dissident Media
1.      The White Book
a.       Ginzburg compiled trial documents and related information for the Sinyavsky and Daniel trial.
b.      Circulated in samizdat
c.       Ginzburg gave a copy of it to the KGB and bravely claimed that he had done nothing illegal as he did not “slander” the Soviet state.
                                                               i.      There was no law specifically prohibiting free speech. However, the state did make generous use of Articles 70 and 190 which outlawed libeling the state.

2.     “The Chronicle of Current Events”
a.       Underground newspaper published by a small group of dissidents, inspired by The White Book.
                                                               i.      It reported on trials, searches, conditions in labor camps, but very carefully did not comment on the news.
1.      It followed the model laid out by Ginzburg that reporting events as they happened was legal.
                                                             ii.      The staff of “The Chronicle” had to keep their identities and production schedule a secret for their own personal protection and to prevent KGB interference in publication.
1.      This created an internal dilemma for many involved because it was a newspaper devoted to openness.
b.      How it was reported
                                                               i.      Made use of the dissident network
1.      People going back and forth from labor camps.
2.      Taking secret notes at trials.
3.      In Issue 5 “The Chronicle” printed specific instructions for how to give them information.
a.       “Pass it forward.”-chain letter type deal
c.       How it was published
                                                               i.      Samizdat or “self-published”
1.      Dissidents typed out copies of “The Chronicle,”  and passed them along. Recipients would type more copies and pass them along.
a.       Hopkins argues that “The Chronicle’s” typists are it’s unsung heroes.
b.      Typing was rough manual work and it also came with great fear that the KGB could burst in at any moment.
2.      History of samizdat
a.       Began with literature during the age of socialist realism.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Socialist realism was the official literary doctrine. Works not following this doctrine were not published.
b.      Samizdat allowed writers to reclaim the realm of writing and publishing from the government.
3.      Samizdat became integral to the dissident movement.
a.       It was one of the few realms for open discussion.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Examples of samizdat essays.
b.      Bukovsky said he would build a monument to the typewriter.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Dissidents often speak of their typewriters with an almost messianic tone.
                                                                                                                                     ii.      The type writers gave them back the voice that the par had censored.
                                                                                                                                   iii.      Alexeyevna said that typing parties helped to establish trust among the dissidents.
c.       Meerson-Aksenov-“awakening of the conscious of Soviet society.”      
                                                                                                                                       i.      No longer would atrocities be hidden.
                                                                                                                                     ii.      Samizdat encouraged open discussion, even if it took place on onion skin paper.

3.     Foreign Publications of “The Chronicle”
a.       Besides samizdat, dissidents made use of “tamizdat,” literally published there.
                                                               i.      Like samizdat, this form of publication was frequently used to publish works that were not approved for the Soviet Union.
1.      The most notable instance is Pasternak’s Dr. Zhivago. (Rubenstein, 14-16)
2.      These texts were then often smuggled back into the Soviet Union.
a.       The interview with Sinyavsky details the process.
b.      As dissidents began to emigrate, copies of “The Chronicle” began to be available all over the world, most notably in New York and London where English language translations were available.  Hopkins explores this issue thoroughly in his book on “The Chronicle.”
                                                               i.      London
1.      Max Hayward translated issue no. 5 in 1968.
2.      Peter Reddaway became involved and compiled the first 11 issues in an annotated anthology Uncensored Russia (1972)
3.      Amnesty International London also published translated copies of “The Chronicle” beginning in 1971.
a.       Circulation reached
                                                             ii.      New York
1.      Chalidze (a dissident) was exiled while in NY in 1972
a.       This coincided with “The Chronicle’s” decision to stop publishing due to KGB pressure.
b.      Chalidze with financial backing from NY businessman Ed Kline began publishing a version of “The Chronicle” in English and Russian.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Relied on sources in and out of Soviet Union
c.       When “The Chronicle” began publishing again in 1974, it continued printing
                                                                                                                                       i.      Could get info to U.S. leaders faster
                                                                                                                                     ii.      Also printed up to 1,200 copies of each issue. Most went to Soviet Union

4.     Western journalists
a.       Served as a liaison between dissidents and world
                                                               i.      Jacoby writes that dissidents were one of the few groups of Russians willing to speak with western journalists.
                                                             ii.      The reporters in turn spread their story to the world at large.
b.      Shared a common goal of free, open discourse
                                                               i.      Walker argues that western journalists were instinctively sympathetic to the plight of the dissidents because of these shared goals.
c.       It went beyond writing stories.
                                                               i.      Western reporters regularly smuggled goods and information in and out of the Soviet Union.
                                                             ii.      Bought things at the foreign goods store.
d.      Wasn’t without its problems.
                                                               i.      Criticism on both sides about bravery
1.      Amalrik and Solzhenitsyn both argue that Western journalists were unwilling to risk losing their plum positions as Moscow correspondents by corresponding with dissidents.
2.      Jacoby has the similar thoughts on Russians who were unwilling to speak with her after finding out her husband was an American journalist.
3.      Jacoby writes that in the early ‘70s, the Party became much stricter with Western journalists. (23-24)
a.       Khrushchev had allowed them to publish as they pleased.
b.      However, by the late sixties, correspondents were regularly harassed by party press people or the KGB.
                                                                                                                                       i.      Party outlawed correspondents with certain dissidents
                                                                                                                                     ii.      By March 1971, KGB  began using physical force with reporters.
e.       Expanded the dissident audience to the west
                                                               i.      This type of coverage gave the dissidents some leverage in the USSR.
1.      Alexeyevna writes of Anatole Shub (Washington Post) who spotlighted Larisa Bogoraz’s poor medical treatment in prison camp. After the article ran, her treatment improved greatly.

5.     Foreign radio
a.       Radio Free Europe, Radio Liberty, Voice of America and BBC radio were all broadcast in the USSR.
                                                               i.      Jacoby argues that this is why dissidents were willing to work with western journalists.
1.      Stories featured in western papers were frequently read in their entirety over the radio.
                                                             ii.      However, by the late ‘60s, Radio Liberty had an entire show devoted to samizdat.
1.      Puddington writes that RL was over-run with samizdat submissions.
a.       Never solicited-illegal
b.      Hired a person whose job it was to verify and confirm facts in samizdat. (Puddington)
2.      Regularly read issues of “The Chronicle” over the air.
3.      Hopkins estimates that while a typical issue of “The Chronicle” would have 1,000 to 10,000 copies in paper and ten times as many readers, having a radio audience increased that exponentially.
b.      Radio was particularly useful source of dissemination for the dissidents due to it’s prominence in Soviet society
                                                               i.      Stalin made it a goal to have radios in every home
1.      Roth-Ey writes that this allowed for the rise of foreign radio because it made radio listening a private instead of a public act
a.       It was almost un-Soviet
                                                                                                                                       i.      Listening to radio was now private and international
                                                             ii.      Foreign radio was attractive to Soviet listenters
1.      Mikkonen: Soviet radio wasn’t even audible in large parts of the U.S.S.R.
2.      While Soviet radio was didactic, western radio was entertaining
a.       The format mixed news and music
3.      It was also considered a more reliable source of information.
a.       Parta: Most people tuned into RL for political news
b.      Samizdat programming was the most popular under Brezhnev
4.      These two factors created a large and diverse audience for foreign radio.
a.       Mikkonen and Parta asses the audience in the early seventies (when the first study was done) and find a

6.      These sources gave dissidents a direct voice to the USSR and to the world. Exposing the flaws of the Soviet system, and the Party’s abuses, to a large public audience was radical.

III) Why dissident media was radical
1.      The point of the dissidents’ use of media was to demonstrate to the USSR and the world what exactly was going on in the Soviet Union. This violated the social norms in the USSR.
a.       This ideology of exposing the truth first came from Khrushchev’s Secret Speech.
                                                                  i.      He called for an exposure of the Stalinist years.
                                                                ii.      However, Khrushchev’s speech was not as radical as it first seemed.
1.      While he denounced the cult of personality, he carefully did not mention the terror of labor camps. He only discussed the purge of the party.
2.      While Khrushchev said exposing the truth of the Stalinist years was necessary, he argued that it must be done carefully and most notably, privately.
a.       He said: “We should not wash out dirty linen before their eyes.”
                                                              iii.      This creates a contradicting message. The idea is almost “expose the truth,” but not too much truth.
b.      Khrushchev’s schizophrenic views on open discussion of the Soviet system can be analyzed by his opinions on arts.
                                                                  i.      In order to get an idea of how willing Khrushchev was to tolerate dissent, we can analyze his policy with art.
1.      Shatz: Literature served as the “conscious” of Russia. It was a way of expressing dissent.
                                                                ii.      It’s nearly impossible to say what Khrushchev’s policy on the arts was. It varied wildly.
1.      Kept the policy of socialist realism in place.
a.       Socialist realism, at it’s most basic level, was a form of censorship.
b.      It only allowed for “socialist” truth.
                                                                                                                                          i.      Bulgakov’s novel, The Master and Margarita, written under Stalin demonstrates the difficulty writers had writing honestly under the doctrine of socialist realism
1.      The novel also demonstrates how the doctrine was enforced-carrots and sticks.
a.       Idea is further explored in Hope against Hope.
2.      It also demonstrates the notion of “double speak.”
a.       The characters with “official” positions do not speak the truth.
b.      This is a criticism the dissidents had of party officials and the Soviet system, which made them take part in a lie.
2.      While Khrushchev did not treat artists as brutally as Stalin did, he did make clear what was and was not acceptable for an artist in the USSR.
a.       He gave a series of speeches of artists explaining that they were the shapers of socialism.
b.      In one speech he said that the party would continue its policy of controlling culture.
3.      He did personally approve the publication of One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
a.       The novel went further than Khrushchev’s speech.
                                                                                                                                          i.      It acknowledged the existence of camps.
                                                                                                                                        ii.      More importantly, it indicted the whole Soviet system, not just Stalinism.
                                                                                                                                      iii.      Jacoby details the reaction of everyday Russians to this novel.
1.      They found it radical.
b.      It still needed to be personally approved by Khrushchev- demonstrating the control the party maintained on culture.
4.      Collectively, it is difficult to find a common thread running through these decisions. Kenez says the Party’s art policy was mainly left to the Khrushchev’s whims.  We do however see that Khrushchev carefully monitored and controlled art and dissent.
c.       The dissidents willingness to expose their “dirty linen” to the world inherently put them at odds with the Soviet system, which promoted “socialist truth.”
IV) The Values Dissident Media Reflected
2.      Glasnost-Openness
a.       One of the most important messages of One Day was the idea that it was necessary to expose the whole truth of the Stalinist era.
                                                               i.      The novel specifically criticizes the notion of socialist realism. It argues that truth and openness about the past trump artistic forms.
1.      This argument is mirrored in Sinyavsky’s On Socialist Realism.
                                                             ii.      In In the First Circle, Solzhenitsyn condemns western journalists for keeping the truth about labor camps hidden.
                                                           iii.      In “Participation and the Lie,” Solzhenitsyn argues that the only way to undermine the Soviet system was to expose its lies.
                                                           iv.      Collectively, we see that Solzhenitsyn argued for openness in discussing public affairs as a way of 
b.      In reading dissident memoirs, the same idea pops up again and again-they couldn’t stay silent about the horrors of the Stalinist years or the current era. To do so, was to support the system. (Shatz)
                                                               i.      The intelligentsia of the ‘30s felt that their silence enabled the rise of Stalinism (Mandelstam)
                                                             ii.      Using this model, the ‘60s dissidents felt that if they exposed the truth about the Brezhnev years they could prevent the rise of high Stalinism.
c.       The obsession with the use of media demonstrates glasnost. Dissidents were caught up in promoting truth in discussion of events, rather than the “double speak” that permeated Soviet society.
                                                               i.      We see this in the shift from literary samizdat to publications like “The Chronicle” and legal/political samizdat.
1.      Politics could be discussed openly, not just hidden behind literature.
d.      Reddaway argues that “The Chronicle” serves as an example of free and open discussion, but also of the right to free expression
3.      Legality
a.       One of the key goals of the dissident movement was to call for the Soviet state to follow it’s own laws.
                                                               i.      A good deal of the out cry over the Sinyavsky and Daniel trial was that they had broken no law. It was not explicitly illegal to publish works abroad.
                                                             ii.      One of the catalysts for the publication of The White Book –to demonstrate the party’s manipulation its laws.
b.      This obsession with legality is evident in dissident media as well.
                                                               i.      The content of “The Chronicle” focused on trial transcripts and describing illegal searches of apartments.
1.      It sought to demonstrate that the Party violated it’s own laws.
a.       Issue 1 of The Chronicle makes this point explicit. It opens by declaring that 1968 was United Nations Human Rights Year, and juxtaposes it with Ginzburg’s trial for publishing the White Book.
                                                                                                                                       i.      This type of trial was in violation of the UN Human Rights treaty.
                                                             ii.      “The Chronicle” existed as an example of free speech.
1.      It insisted on it’s own legality beginning in Issue 5.
a.       Ginzburg’s model-telling the truth is not slandering the state.
c.       The argument here is that truth is legal, even if it is not “socialist” truth.
                                                               i.      Andrei Amalrik embodies this idea
1.       Arrested for giving interviews to foreign journalists under article 70.
2.      He told the KGB that he had done nothing illegal because nothing he said was false.
3.      He argued more over that he had an obligation to expose the truth in order to save the Soviet Union.
                                                             ii.      The rebirth of “The Chronicle”
1.      The KGB succeeded for briefly shutting down “The Chronicle” from 1972-1973.
2.      When it restarted, the identities of its editors were no longer a secret.  They decided to admit who they were as a way of making a statement that nothing they were doing was illegal.
                                                           iii.      The link between truth and legality was established early on in the dissident movement.
1.      December 5, 1968- Constitution Day Protest on Pushkin Square
a.       Considered the birth of the movement
2.      Ginzburg (the organizer) and protestors called for glasnost for the trial
a.       This would make the trial follow the rule of Soviet law.
3.      The protesters used free speech (a protest) to call for truthfulnesss in legal proceedings.