Aesthetics of Alienation: Reassessment of Early Soviet Cultural Theories (Studies in Russian Literature and Theory)

This provocative work takes issue with the idea that Socialist Realism was mainly the creation of party leaders and was imposed from above on the literati who lived and worked under the Soviet regime. Evgeny Dobrenko, a leading expert on Soviet literature, argues instead--and offers persuasive evidence--that the aesthetic theories underpinning Socialist Realism arose among the writers themselves, born of their proponents' desire for power in the realm of literary policymaking. Accordingly, Dobrenko closely considers the evolution of these theories, deciphering the power relations and social conditions that helped to shape them. In chapters on Proletkult, RAPP, LEF, and Pereval, Dobrenko reexamines the theories generated by these major Marxist literary groupings of the early Soviet Union. He shows how each approached the problems of literature's response to the presumed social mandate of the young communist society, and how Socialist Realism emerged as a conglomerate of these earlier, revolutionary theories. With extensive and detailed reference to supporting testimony and documents, Dobrenko clearly demonstrates how Socialist Realism was created from within the revolutionary culture, and how this culture and its disciples fully participated in this creative process. His work represents a major breakthrough in our current understanding of the complex sources that contributed to early Soviet culture. Dedication 6 Epigraph 8 Contents 10 Translator’s Note 12 Introduction 14 1 The Academy of Poetry and Russian Society 22 2. Proletkult: “The Music of Revolution”; or, Creation Without Creators 29 3 RAPP: The Aesthetics of Restraint; or, Worldview as Creation 50 4 LEF: The Third Factory as “New Aesthetic Enterprise” 71 5 Pereval: “Organic Creativity”; or, Hands for the Hourglass 94 6 The “Social Mandate”; or, Flexion in an Inflexible Time 108 7 Socialist Realism: The PetriWed Utopia 128 Notes 146 Works Cited 160 Index 168 About the Author 172 The academy of poetry and Russian society Proletkult : "the music of revolution" or creation without creators Rapp : the aesthetics of restraint or worldview as creation Lef : the third factory as "new aesthetic enterprise" Pereval : "organic creativity" or hands for the hourglass The "social mandate" or flexion in an inflexible time Socialist realism : the petrified utopia.