The book presents an original, interdisciplinary analysis of religious and mythological perspectives in fiction published in the Soviet Union between the mid-1960s and the mid-1980s. In doing so, it points to ways in which anthropological theory can be used as a framework for literary criticism. It also shows how, in the two decades before perestroika, religion and mythology served as alternative models for the intellectual and political reorientation of Soviet society. Selected works are explored with reference to a formative debate in anthropological studies on the nature and development of religion, based on Edward B. Tylor's theory of 'animism' and Emile Durkheim's theory of 'totemism'. It is shown how the animist/totemist dichotomy highlighted by the controversy is reflected in Russian religious thought before 1917 and, particularly, in the literature of the Soviet era. Within the framework of this debate, a selection of novels is discussed in the light of a range of mythological and religious systems. Attention is drawn to the connection between Valentin Rasputin's religious vision and traditional Siberian beliefs, particularly those of the Buryat. The Georgian novel Data Tutashkia, by Chabua Amiredzhibi, is analysed with reference to Zoroastrian thought. Daniil Granin 's Kartina ('The Picture') serves as an example of a work where, in accordance with Tylor's theory, notions of art and beauty take on an animist quality. It is argued that early fiction by Chingiz Aitmatov reveals a tension between animist perceptions and the totemic understanding of religion, and mirrors aspects of pre-Islamic, Central Asian religious tradition. The writing of Vladimir Tendriakov offers an example of a vision divided between an awareness of Christian dilemmas and loyalty to Marxist-Leninist sociological models. The study also shows how Durkheim's theory of religion as an expression of a group's awareness of its identity can be related to ideas put forward by Russian nationalist writers: Iurii Bondarev, Sergei Alekseev and Vasilii Belov. It suggests that examples of fiction by Petr Proskurin, and later works by Chingiz Aitmatov and Vladimir Tendriakov, indicate revived interest in the God-building theory of Maksim Gor'kii and Anatolii Lunacharskii. In conclusion, the book argues that subtextual religious and mythological narratives in Soviet fiction published in the years between the fall of Khrushchev and the Millenium of Christianity in Rus', provided a model for new literary discourse under perestroika and for subsequent political transformations.

A fine example of Village Prose from the post-Stalin era, Farewell to Matyora decries the loss of the Russian peasant culture to the impersonal, soulless march of progress. It is the final summer of the peasant village of Matyora. A dam will be completed in the fall, destroying the village. Although their departure is inevitable, the characters over when, and even whether, they should leave. A haunting story with a heartfelt theme, Farewell to Matyora is a passionate plea for humanity and an eloquent cry for a return to an organic life.

First Published in 1998. This volume will surely be regarded as the standard guide to Russian literature for some considerable time to come... It is therefore confidently recommended for addition to reference libraries, be they academic or public.

The story of the Communist Party of Australia has been told in various ways. Until now, however, archival collections that have borne on this story have been relatively inaccessible to the ordinary, interested reader. This book begins to redress that deficiency by bringing together 85 key documents from the Russian State Archives of Social and Political History (RGASPI), selected from a collection of thousands of documents concerning the relations between the Communist International and the Communist Party of Australia. The selection focuses on the relationship between the CPA and the Comintern because the activities of the CPA are essentially incomprehensible without understanding the international communist context within which the CPA operated. That context was dominated by the newly-created Soviet state and its decision to authorize and utilize a network of communist parties throughout the world.

From Back Cover: Live and Remember is one of the most important works of Russian literature of the post-Stalin, pre-glasnost era. First published in Russian in 1974, it was immediately hailed by Soviet critics as a superb-if atypical-example of war literature and a moving depiction of the degradation and ultimate damnation of a frontline deserter-although it did provoke controversy for its sympathetic portrayal of the deserter's wife. But the novel has also attracted the attention of both Western and Soviet critics for it masterly psychological portrait of two characters caught in a hopeless situation. The novel tells the story of a Siberian peasant who makes a tragic miscalculation by deserting in the last year of the war, and the loyal wife who embraces his fate as her own. Rasputin examines the doomed relationship of these characters, sharply evoking the ties that bind individuals to their land, their community, their family. More than commentary on the nature of Soviet power or on the conduct of the war, Live and Remember is simultaneously a timeless tale with universal appeal and a very Russian story.

Recoge: 1. The nationalist imperative - 2. The historical background - 3. Solzhenitsyn an the russian question - 4. Christian nationalism and the black hundreds - 5. National bolshevism and the two parties - 6. Zhirinovsky and the last drive to the south - 7. Neo-nazism and the national revolution - 8. The nationalist intelligentsia, eurasia and the problem of technology - 9. Reform nationalism - 10. The global regime and the nationalist reaction.

The stories in this collection portray Soviet women of different ages and educational backgrounds at home and at work, in cities and villages. Their themes reflect the social changes in Soviet life in the past 20 years, and are aimed to stimulate inquiry into social and feminist issues.