Gender and Survival in Soviet Russia: A Life in the Shadow of Stalin’s Terror (Library of Modern Russia)

"This first-hand witness account - originally written by Ludmila Miklashevskaya in 1976 and here translated into English by historian Elaine MacKinnon for the first time - tells the important story of one woman's persecution under Stalin. From Miklashevskaya's middle-class Jewish childhood in Odessa, to her life in exile as the wife of 'an enemy of the people' and false imprisonment in a labour camp for the attempted murder of NKVD leader Nikolai Yezhov, to her later attempts at rehabilitation, her memoir is a fascinating tapestry of Soviet artistic, intellectual, and political life set against the tumultuous backdrop of revolutions, wars, and repressive regimes. Accompanied by a translator's introduction and detailed historical explanatory notes, Gender and Survival in Soviet Russia sheds new light on the relationship between power, gender, and society in 20th-century Russia. This book is thus a vital primary resource for scholars of modern Russian history and gender studies, offering a compelling and personal route into understanding how the machinations of Soviet Russia destroyed everyday life, tearing families apart and leaving scars that never healed"--Publisher's description This first-hand witness account – originally written by Lyudmila Miklashevskaya in 1976 and here translated into English by historian Elaine MacKinnon for the first time – tells the important story of one woman’s persecution under Stalin. From Miklashevskaya’s middle-class Jewish childhood in Odessa, to her life in exile as the wife of ‘an enemy of the people’ and false imprisonment in a labour camp for the attempted murder of NKVD leader Nikolai Yezhov, to her later attempts at rehabilitation, her memoir is a fascinating tapestry of Soviet artistic, intellectual, and political life set against the tumultuous backdrop of revolutions, wars, and repressive regimes. Accompanied by a translator’s introduction and detailed historical explanatory notes, Gender and Survival in Soviet Russia sheds new light on the relationship between power, gender, and society in 20th-century Russia. This book is thus a vital primary resource for scholars of modern Russian history and gender studies, offering a compelling and personal route into understanding how the machinations of Soviet Russia destroyed everyday life, tearing families apart and leaving scars that never healed. This first-hand witness account - originally written by Ludmila Miklashevskaya in 1976 and here translated into English by historian Elaine MacKinnon for the first time - tells the important story of one woman's persecution under Stalin. From Miklashevskaya's middle-class Jewish childhood in Odessa, to her life in exile as the wife of 'an enemy of the people' and false imprisonment in a labour camp for the attempted murder of NKVD leader Nikolai Yezhov, to her later attempts at rehabilitation, her memoir is a fascinating tapestry of Soviet artistic, intellectual, and political life set against the tumultuous backdrop of revolutions, wars, and repressive regimes. Accompanied by a translator's introduction and detailed historical explanatory notes, Gender and Survival in Soviet Russia sheds new light on the relationship between power, gender, and society in 20th-century Russia. This book is thus a vital primary resource for scholars of modern Russian history and gender studies, offering a compelling and personal route into understanding how the machinations of Soviet Russia. -- Provided by publisher Cover 1 Half Title 2 Series 3 Title 6 Copyright 7 Dedication 8 Contents 10 Translator’s Acknowledgments 11 Translator’s Preface 13 Introduction 14 1 An Odessa Childhood 46 2 Growing Up during War and Revolution 68 3 A New Life in Petrograd 88 4 Gathering Clouds: Marital Storms and Emigration 112 5 Homecoming and a New Start in Moscow 132 6 Love and Marriage in Leningrad 152 7 Motherhood in a Time of Terror 170 8 Into the Vortex of Suffering: Ten Years in the Gulag 194 9 Release, Exile, and Rehabilitation: The Bittersweet Taste of “Freedom” 220 Notes 240 Introduction 240 1 An Odessa Childhood 246 2 Growing Up during War and Revolution 248 3 A New Life in Petrograd 252 4 Gathering Clouds: Marital Storms and Emigration 256 5 Homecoming and a New Start in Moscow 261 6 Love and Marriage in Leningrad 263 7 Motherhood in a Time of Terror 266 8 Into the Vortex of Suffering: Ten Years in the Gulag 268 9 Release, Exile, and Rehabilitation: The Bittersweet Taste of “Freedom” 270 Further Readings 272 Index 274