Stakhanovism and the Politics of Productivity in the USSR, 1935-1941

by Lewis H. Siegelbaum

Overview

This is the first study in English of a major and instructive episode in the history of the Soviet Union. The Stakhanovite movement commemorated the mining of 108 tons of coal by Alexi Stakhanov in 1935 and it was an important symbol by which the state urged workers to achieve greater productivity. As Siegelbaum shows, Stakhanovism can be used to explore the social relations within Soviet industry at a critical stage in its development. In this sense, Stakhanovism was an important symbol of a shift in official priorities from construction of the means of production via increasing inputs of labor to intensive use of capital and labor.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521395564
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	06/29/1990
Series:	Cambridge Russian, Soviet and Post-Soviet Studies , #59
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	344
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.79(d)

Table of Contents

List of tables; Preface; List of Russian terms and abbreviations; Introduction; 1. Preconditions and precursors: industrial relations 1929–35; 2. From Stakhanov to Stakhanovism; 3. Managers and specialists in the Stakhanovite years; 4. The making of Stakhanovites; 5. Stakhanovites and non-Stakhanovites; 6. Stakhanovites in the cultural mythology of the 1930s; 7. From the Great Purges to the Great Patriotic War: the decline of Stakhanovism; Conclusion; Selected bibliography; Index.

Editorial Reviews

"...by far the best entry into the Soviet industrial scene, from above and from below, presented with remarkable competence and good judgement...[Siegelbaum] helps us understand the organization of labour and problems of stimulation; we learn about norm setting and shop-floor foremen; we get a good historical overview of forms of labour organization and 'socialist competition' through the decade that interests him and we should commend him, in particular, for his knowledge of the labour process in the coal mines where Stakhanovism was invented." Moshe Lewin, Labour/Le Travail

"A short review cannot do justice to the subtlety of insight in evidence throughout this book. In this work, Siegelbaum is generous in his praise of scholars who have influenced him. One can only conclude that Stakhanovism and the Politics of Productivity will itself undoubtedly become a model for future practitioners of Soviet labor history. William B. Husband, The Russian Review

"In this fine study, Professor Siegelbaum tells the story of Stalin's ultimately successful attempt to raise productivity sufficiently to enable the country to defend itself. Warmly recommended." Virginia Quarterly Review

"...we now need a steady stream of monographs precisely like this one, which eventually will allow us to construct the rich, multi-dimensional evidentiary base necessary to sustain answers to broader interpretative questions. By this standard, Siegelbaum's book merits strong praise and a wide audience." Peter Hauslohner, Labor History

From the Publisher