Russian Views of Stalinism as a Negative Satellite of Capitalism

Abstract

The conflation of Stalinism with socialism was a key aspect of the relationship between Stalinism and capitalism. The Russian Marxist Nodari Simoniya exposed that conflation in his book What We Have Built, which is discussed in this essay in the context of Russian historiography about Stalinism. The main themes of Simoniya’s critique of Stalinism as a historical reversal are elaborated and linked to political images during the Cold War that distorted the meaning of socialism. Stalinism is revealed as a negative satellite of capitalism, constituting an external economic zone, not an alternative form of world order.     

State Capitalism in Time: Russian Natural Gas at the Service of Foreign Policy

This article explores the phenomenon of the enduring state control over the Russian natural gas sector. We suggest that explanations of the underlying motives can be classified under two broad theoretical categories: idealism and utilitarianism. Thus, we argue that state capitalism in the Russian natural gas industry can be understood through the idealistic claims of state power and of serving the national interest, which underpin the dominant perception of natural gas resources as a foreign policy tool. Moreover, we contend that although this perception is often considered as a product of the last decade, in fact it is rooted in history, as a legacy of the Soviet era.     

Young Married Women in the Russian Countryside: Women's Networks,Communication and Power

This essay explores the experiences of recently married young women living in rural Russia in the village of Karsun in the Ul’yanovsk Oblast’. It analyses the connections between women in rural communities looking at social networks and the power relations inherent within them. The ways in which forms of power among and between women (as well as between women and men) impact on young women's agency are critically appraised through an analysis of what this essay terms forms of ‘women's power’. The essay also shows how women's discussions of their experiences reflect the problems that the perceived physical and emotional absences of men present for younger married women and their attempts to develop forms of autonomy.     

Global Capitalism and the Transformation of State Socialism

The article outlines the footprint of international economic interests under state socialism, and considers in more detail the economic integration of the postcommunist countries into the world system in the post-1989 period of the building of capitalism. The focus of the article is on the extent of economic globalization of countries and their economic corporations. It is contended that the globalization of capitalist companies and the direct role of global economic forces had little importance under state socialism. Since 1989, policy in the former state socialist countries has been geared to “joining” the world system, optimistically its core. Important differences have developed between the postsocialist states with respect to economic penetration and exposure to the world market. The outcomes have not fulfilled the expectations of early advocates of transformation and entry to the world economy. Although the new member states of the European Union have entered the world economy as formal members of the “core,” they are not economically equal to the dominant “old” members of the EU. In all the postcommunist countries, there is an absence of large scale global companies, of comparable levels of innovation, research and development. Russia is a resources rich country, a “hybrid” social formation containing elements of state economic control, national capitalism, and global capitalism. I conclude that the semi periphery is not a transient category in the world economy; it has potential for persistence and renewal.     

Russian Educational Reform and the Introduction of the Unified State Exam. A View from the Provinces

The introduction of the Unified State Examination (USE) in Russian higher education has been the subject of much debate. One of the primary factors hindering the transition has been ambivalent public and professional perceptions of the effectiveness of the USE in addressing the problems associated with inequalities of access to higher education. This essay contributes to research in this area through a case study analysing the introduction of the USE in Ul'yanovsk Oblast’. It draws on survey data collected from pupils and parents of final year high school students about the USE reforms and explores the reasons why the transition to USE did not proceed as smoothly as its creators might have envisaged. Here the negative perceptions of the high-school graduates and parents reveal that the reforms have been judged to be largely ineffective with regard to reducing the role of material and regional inequalities in determining access to higher education, and in addressing how the differing institutional status of ordinary ‘comprehensive’ and elite, specialised schools continues to create inequalities in access to higher education in Russia.     

Capitalism,socialism and economic growth: A post-Keynesian pekspective

I thank Robert Dixon for many comments and suggestions and Michael W. Hughey for editorial remarks.