The “warm wind of change” that blew from the rostrum of the 20th Congress of the CPSU in February 1956 dramatically changed the lives of Soviet people. The writer Ilya Grigorievich Erenburg gave an accurate description of the Khrushchev era, calling it the “thaw”. His novel with the symbolic title “The Thaw” posed a whole series of questions: what should be said about the past, what is the mission of the intelligentsia, what should be its relationship with the party.

In the second half of the 1950s. Society was gripped by a feeling of delight from sudden freedom; the people themselves did not fully understand this new and, undoubtedly, sincere feeling. It was the lack of agreement that gave it a special charm. This feeling dominated in one of the characteristic films of those years - “I Walk Through Moscow”... (Nikita Mikhalkov in the title role, this is one of his first roles). And the song from the film became a hymn to vague delight: “Everything in the world happens well, but you don’t immediately understand what’s going on...”.

The “Thaw” affected, first of all, literature. New magazines appeared: “Youth”, “Young Guard”, “Moscow”, “Our Contemporary”. A special role was played by the magazine “New World”, headed by A.T. Tvardovsky. It was here that the story of A.I. was published. Solzhenitsyn "One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich." Solzhenitsyn became one of the “dissidents,” as they were later called (dissidents). His writings presented a true picture of the labor, suffering and heroism of the Soviet people.

The rehabilitation of writers S. Yesenin, M. Bulgakov, A. Akhmatova, M. Zoshchenko, O. Mandelstam, B. Pilnyak and others began. Soviet people began to read more and think more. It was then that the statement appeared that the USSR was the most reading country in the world. A mass passion for poetry became a lifestyle; performances by poets took place in stadiums and huge halls. Perhaps, after the “Silver Age” of Russian poetry, interest in it did not rise as high as in the “Khrushchev decade”. For example, E. Yevtushenko, according to contemporaries, performed 250 times a year. The second idol of the reading public was A. Voznesensky.

The “Iron Curtain” to the West began to open. Magazines began to publish works by foreign writers E. Hemingway, E.-M. Remarque, T. Dreiser, J. London and others (E. Zola, V. Hugo, O. de Balzac, S. Zweig).

Remarque and Hemingway influenced not only the minds, but also the lifestyle of certain groups of the population, especially young people, who tried to copy Western fashion and behavior. Lines from the song: “... He wore tight trousers, read Hemingway...”. This is the image of a dude: a young man in tight trousers, long-toed boots, bent in a strange pretentious pose, imitating Western rock and roll, twist, neck, etc.

The process of the “thaw”, the liberalization of literature, was not unambiguous, and this was characteristic of the entire life of society during Khrushchev’s time. Such writers as B. Pasternak (for the novel “Doctor Zhivago”), V.D. remained banned. Dudintsev (“Not by Bread Alone”), D. Granin, A. Voznesensky, I. Erenburg, V.P. Nekrasov. The attacks on writers were associated not so much with criticism of their works, but with changes in the political situation, i.e. with the curtailment of political and social freedoms. At the end of the 1950s. The decline of the “thaw” began in all spheres of society. Among the intelligentsia, voices against N.S.’s policies were becoming increasingly louder. Khrushchev.

Boris Pasternak worked for many years on a novel about the revolution and civil war. Poems from this novel were published back in 1947. But he was unable to publish the novel itself, because the censors saw in it a departure from “socialist realism.” The manuscript of Doctor Zhivago went abroad and was published in Italy. In 1958, Pasternak was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for this novel, which was not published in the USSR. This caused unequivocal condemnation from Khrushchev and the party. A campaign of flagellation against Pasternak began. He was expelled from the Writers' Union. Almost all writers were forced to join this campaign, subjecting Pasternak to insults. The defamation of Pasternak reflected the party's attempts to maintain complete control over society, not allowing any dissent. Pasternak himself wrote a poem during these days that became famous years later:

What did I dare to mess up?

Am I a dirty trickster and a villain?

I made the whole world cry over the beauty of my land.

Society of the Khrushchev period changed noticeably. People began to visit more often; they “missed communication, missed the opportunity to talk loudly about everything that was bothering them.” After 10 days of fear, when conversations even in a narrow and seemingly confidential circle could and did end in camps and executions, the opportunity arose to talk and communicate. A new phenomenon has become heated debates in the workplace after the end of the working day, in small cafes. “... Cafes have become like aquariums - with glass walls for everyone to see. And instead of solid... [titles], the country was strewn with frivolous “Smiles”, “Minutes”, “Veterki”. In the “glasses” they talked about politics and art, sports and matters of the heart. Communication also took organized forms in palaces and cultural centers, the number of which increased. Oral journals, debates, discussions of literary works, films and performances - these forms of communication have become noticeably livelier compared to previous years, and the statements of the participants were distinguished by a certain degree of freedom. “Associations of interests” began to emerge - clubs of philatelists, scuba divers, book lovers, florists, lovers of songs, jazz music, etc.

The most unusual for Soviet times were international friendship clubs, also the brainchild of the Thaw. In 1957, the VI World Festival of Youth and Students was held in Moscow. It led to the establishment of friendly contacts between the youth of the USSR and other countries. Since 1958, they began to celebrate the Day of Soviet Youth.

A characteristic feature of the “Khrushchev Thaw” was the development of satire. The audience enthusiastically received the performances of clowns Oleg Popov, Tarapunka and Shtepsel, Arkady Raikin, M.V. Mironova and A.S. Menakera, P.V. Rudakov and V.P. Nechaeva. The country excitedly repeated Raikin’s words “I’m already laughing!” and “It’s done!”

Television was part of people's lives. Televisions were a rarity; they were watched together with friends, acquaintances, neighbors, and lively discussed programs. The game KVN, which appeared in 1961, gained incredible popularity. This game itself in the 1960s. has become a general epidemic. KVN was played by everyone and everywhere: schoolchildren of junior and senior classes, students of technical schools and students, workers and office workers; in schools and red corners of dormitories, in student clubs and palaces of culture, in rest homes and sanatoriums.

In the art of cinema, the policy of filming only undisputed masterpieces was removed. In 1951, the stagnation in cinema became especially noticeable - only 6 full-length feature films were shot during the year. Subsequently, new talented actors began to appear on the screens. Viewers were introduced to such outstanding works as “Quiet Don”, “The Cranes Are Flying”, “The House Where I Live”, “The Idiot”, etc. In 1958, film studios released 102 films. film (“Carnival Night” with I.I. Ilyinsky and L.M. Gurchenko, “Amphibian Man” with A. Vertinskaya, “Hussar Ballad” with Yu.V. Yakovlev and L.I. Golubkina, “Dog Barbos and the Extraordinary cross" and "Moonshiners" by L.I. Gaidai). A high tradition of intellectual cinema was established, which was picked up in the 1960s and 1970s. Many masters of domestic cinema have received wide international recognition (G. Chukhrai, M. Kalatazov, S. Bondarchuk, A. Tarkovsky, N. Mikhalkov, etc.).

Cinemas began to show Polish, Italian (Federico Fellini), French, German, Indian, Hungarian, and Egyptian films. For the Soviet people it was a breath of new, fresh Western life.

The general approach to the cultural environment was contradictory: it was distinguished by the previous desire to put it in the service of the administrative-command ideology. Khrushchev himself sought to attract wide circles of the intelligentsia to his side, but considered them as “automatic machine gunners of the party,” as he directly said in one of his speeches (i.e., the intelligentsia had to work for the needs of the party). Already since the late 1950s. The control of the party apparatus over the activities of the artistic intelligentsia began to increase. At meetings with its representatives, Khrushchev mentored writers and artists in a fatherly manner, telling them how to work. Although he himself had little understanding of cultural issues, he had average tastes. All this gave rise to distrust of the party's policy in the field of culture.

Opposition sentiments intensified, primarily among the intelligentsia. Representatives of the opposition considered it necessary to carry out a more decisive de-Stalinization than was envisaged by the authorities. The party could not help but react to the public speeches of the oppositionists: “soft repressions” were applied to them (exclusion from the party, dismissal from work, deprivation of capital registration, etc.).

Education

What did the Thaw policy mean in the spiritual sphere? Revival of culture in the 50-60s

September 9, 2015

On March 5, 1953, an event occurred that radically changed the course of foreign and domestic policy of the USSR. I. Stalin died. By this time, the repressive methods of governing the country had already exhausted themselves, so the henchmen of Stalin’s course urgently had to carry out some reforms aimed at optimizing the economy and implementing social transformations. This time was called the thaw. What the Thaw policy meant in the spiritual sphere, what new names appeared in the cultural life of the country, can be read in this article.

XX Congress of the CPSU

In 1955, after the resignation of Malenkov, Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev became the head of the Soviet Union. In February 1956, at the 20th Congress of the CPSU, his famous speech about the cult of personality was made. After this, the authority of the new leader noticeably strengthened, despite the resistance of Stalin’s henchmen.

The 20th Congress gave rise to various reform initiatives in our country, reviving the process of cultural reformation of society. What the Thaw policy meant in the spiritual and literary life of people can be learned from new books and novels published at that time.

Thaw politics in literature

In 1957, the famous work of B. Pasternak “Doctor Zhivago” was published abroad. Despite the fact that this work was banned, it sold in huge quantities in samizdat copies made on old typewriters. The same fate befell the works of M. Bulgakov, V. Grossman and other writers of that time.

The publication of A. Solzhenitsyn’s famous work “One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich” is indicative. The story, which describes the terrible everyday life of Stalin's camp, was immediately rejected by the chief political scientist Suslov. But the editor of the New World magazine was able to show Solzhenitsyn’s story personally to N.S. Khrushchev, after which permission was given for publication.

Works exposing Stalin's repressions found their readers.

The opportunity to convey your thoughts to readers, to publish your works in defiance of censorship and authorities - this is what the Thaw policy meant in the spiritual sphere and literature of that time.

Revival of theater and cinema

In the 50-60s, the theater experienced its rebirth. The repertoire of the leading stages of the mid-century can best tell what the Thaw policy meant in the spiritual sphere and theatrical art. Productions about workers and collective farmers have gone into oblivion; the classical repertoire and works of the 20s of the 20th century are returning to the stage. But the command style of work still dominated in the theater, and administrative positions were occupied by incompetent and illiterate officials. Because of this, many performances never saw their audience: plays by Meyerhold, Vampilov and many others remained shelved.

The thaw had a beneficial effect on cinema. Many films of that time became known far beyond the borders of our country. Such works as “The Cranes Are Flying” and “Ivan’s Childhood” won the most prestigious international awards. Soviet cinematography returned to our country the status of a film power, which had been lost since the time of Eisenstein.

Religious persecution

The reduction of political pressure on various aspects of people's lives did not affect the religious policy of the state. Persecution of spiritual and religious leaders intensified. The initiator of the anti-religious campaign was Khrushchev himself. Instead of the physical destruction of believers and religious figures of various faiths, the practice of public ridicule and debunking of religious prejudices was used. Basically, everything that the Thaw policy meant in the spiritual life of believers boiled down to “re-education” and condemnation.

Results

Unfortunately, the period of cultural flourishing did not last long. The final point in the thaw was put by the significant event of 1962 - the destruction of the art exhibition at the Manege. Despite the curtailment of freedoms in the Soviet Union, a return to the dark Stalinist times did not take place. What the Thaw policy meant in the spiritual sphere of every citizen can be described by a sense of the wind of change, a decrease in the role of mass consciousness and an appeal to a person as an individual with the right to his own views.

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What did the “thaw” policy mean in the spiritual sphere?

Answers:

depending on what period you are asking about, but it seems to me that these are most likely reforms that contributed to the improvement and, in the literal sense of the word, of the “thaw” compared to other times.

The works of Western economists began to be published, some scientists were rehabilitated, previously prohibited works began to be carefully published, and films were released. But the thaw was inconsistent: The greatest danger to Khrushchev's communism was the intelligentsia. She had to be restrained and intimidated. And in the last years of Khrushchev in power, wave after wave of denunciations of poets, artists, writers. And again the Jesuitical Stalinist methods: they invite you to a conversation with Khrushchev, and at it they arrange a public execution. Once again the sycophants are in favor. The best representatives of culture are again in disgrace.

To intimidate the masses, those close to Khrushchev convinced him of the advisability of starting persecution of the Orthodox Church. Thus, it was decided to leave only 11 churches in Moscow. All KGB agents among the clergy were instructed to publicly renounce their faith. Even the rector of one of the theological academies, a long-time secret police agent, Professor Osipov, publicly announced a break with religion. In one of the famous monasteries, things came to a siege and a battle between the monks and the police. Well, they didn’t stand on ceremony with the Muslim and Jewish religions at all. The campaign against the intelligentsia and religion was the most difficult deed of the last years of Khrushchev’s reign.

And it was finally discovered that the literary struggle is only a reflection and expression of the processes rapidly taking place in society. After the Thaw literature, many things became morally impossible for a self-respecting writer, for example, the romanticization of violence and hatred, attempts to construct an “ideal” hero, or the desire to “artistically” illustrate the thesis that the life of Soviet society knows a conflict only between the good and the excellent. After the literature thaw, much became possible, sometimes even morally obligatory, and no later frosts were able to distract both real writers and real readers either from attention to the so-called “little” person, or from a critical perception of reality, or from looking at culture as something that opposes power and social routine. The activity of Alexander Tvardovsky as editor-in-chief of the magazine “New World” was significant in its spiritual impact on society, giving the reader many new names and posing many new problems. Many works by Anna Akhmatova, Mikhail Zoshchenko, Sergei Yesenin, Marina Tsvetaeva and others have returned to readers. The revitalization of the spiritual life of society was facilitated by the emergence of new creative unions.

The Union of Writers of the RSFSR, the Union of Artists of the RSFSR, and the Union of Cinematograph Workers of the USSR were formed. A new drama theater “Sovremennik” was opened in the capital. In the literature of the 50s, interest in man and his spiritual values ​​increased (D.A. Granin “I’m Going into a Thunderstorm”, Yu.P. German “My Dear Man”, etc.). The popularity of young poets - Yevtushenko, Okudzhava, Voznesensky - grew. Dudintsev’s novel “Not by Bread Alone” received a wide response from the public, where the topic of illegal repression was first raised. However, this work received a negative assessment from the country's leaders. In the early 60s, exposure of the “ideological vacillations” of literary and artistic figures intensified. Khutsiev’s film “Ilyich’s Outpost” received a disapproving assessment. At the end of 1962, Khrushchev visited an exhibition of works by young artists in the Moscow Manege. In the work of some avant-garde artists, he saw a violation of the “laws of beauty” or simply “daub.” The head of state considered his personal opinion in matters of art to be unconditional and the only correct one. At a later meeting with cultural figures, he harshly criticized the works of many talented artists, sculptors, and poets.

Even before the 20th Congress of the CPSU, journalistic and literary works appeared that marked the birth of a new direction in Soviet literature - renovationism. One of the first such works was V. Pomerantsev’s article “On Sincerity in Literature,” published in 1953 in Novy Mir, where he first raised the question that “to write honestly means not to think about the expression of high-ranking faces and not high readers." The question of the vital necessity of the existence of various literary schools and movements was also raised here. New World published articles written in a new key by V. Ovechkin, F. Abramov, M. Lifshits, as well as works by I. Ehrenburg (“Thaw”), V. Panova (“Seasons”), F. Panferova (“Volga-Mother River”), etc. In them, the authors moved away from the traditional varnishing of the real life of people in a socialist society. For the first time in many years, the question was raised here about the destructiveness of the atmosphere that had developed in the country for the intelligentsia. However, the authorities recognized the publication of these works as “harmful” and removed A. Tvardovsky from the leadership of the magazine.

During the ongoing rehabilitation of the victims of political repression, books by M. Koltsov, I. Babel, A. Vesely, I. Kataev and others were returned to the reader. Life itself raised the question of the need to change the style of the leadership of the Writers' Union and its relations with the CPSU Central Committee. A. Fadeev’s attempt to achieve this through the withdrawal of ideological functions from the Ministry of Culture led to his disgrace and then his death. In his suicide letter, he noted that art in the USSR was “ruined by the self-confident and ignorant leadership of the party,” and writers, even the most recognized ones, were reduced to the status of boys, destroyed, “ideologically scolded and called it partisanship.”

I don’t see the opportunity to live any longer, since the art to which I gave my life was ruined by the self-confident and ignorant leadership of the party, and now can no longer be corrected. The best cadres of literature - in numbers not even dreamed of by the royal satraps - were physically exterminated or died thanks to the criminal connivance of those in power; the best people in literature died at a premature age; everything else that was more or less capable of creating true values ​​died before reaching 40-50 years of age. Literature is the holy of holies - given over to be torn to pieces by bureaucrats and the most backward elements of the people... V. Dudintsev (“Not by Bread Alone”), D. Granin (“Seekers”), E. Dorosh spoke about this in their works (“Village Diary”). The inability to act by repressive methods forced the party leadership to look for new methods of influencing the intelligentsia. Since 1957, meetings between the leadership of the Central Committee and literary and artistic figures have become regular. The personal tastes of N. S. Khrushchev, who made numerous speeches at these meetings, acquired the character of official assessments. Such unceremonious intervention did not find support not only among the majority of the participants in these meetings and the intelligentsia in general, but also among the broadest sections of the population.

In a letter addressed to Khrushchev, L. Semenova from Vladimir wrote: “You should not have spoken at this meeting. After all, you are not an expert in the field of art... But the worst thing is that the assessment you expressed is accepted as mandatory due to your social status. But in art, decreeing even absolutely correct provisions is harmful.” At these meetings it was openly said that, from the point of view of the authorities, only those cultural workers who find an inexhaustible source of creative inspiration in “the politics of the party, in its ideology” are good. After the 20th Congress of the CPSU, ideological pressure was somewhat weakened in the field of musical art, painting, and cinematography. Responsibility for the “excesses” of previous years was assigned to Stalin, Beria, Zhdanov, Molotov, Malenkov and others. In May 1958, the CPSU Central Committee issued a resolution “On correcting errors in the evaluation of the operas “The Great Friendship”, “Bogdan Khmelnitsky” and “From with all my heart,” in which the previous assessments of D. Shostakovich, S. Prokofiev, A. Khachaturian, V. Shebalin, G. Popov, N. Myaskovsky and others were recognized as unsubstantiated and unfair. Thus, the Stalinist the stigma of representatives of the “anti-people formalist trend”. At the same time, in response to calls among the intelligentsia to repeal other decisions of the 40s. on ideological issues it was stated that they “played a huge role in the development of artistic creativity along the path of socialist realism” and in their “main content they retain relevant significance.” This indicated that, despite the appearance of new works in which the sprouts of free thought appeared, in general the policy of the “thaw” in spiritual life had well-defined boundaries. Speaking about them at one of his last meetings with writers, Khrushchev said that what had been achieved in recent years “does not mean at all that now, after the condemnation of the cult of personality, the time has come for gravity... The Party has carried out and will consistently and firmly carry out... Lenin’s course, uncompromisingly opposing any ideological vacillations.”

One of the striking examples of the permissible limits of the “thaw” in spiritual life was the “Pasternak case.” The publication in the West of his novel Doctor Zhivago, banned by the authorities, and the awarding of the Nobel Prize to him put the writer literally outside the law. In October 1958, he was expelled from the Writers' Union and forced to refuse the Nobel Prize to avoid deportation from the country. This is what M. N. Yakovleva, a contemporary of those events, a representative of the intelligentsia, translator, and children's writer, writes about the persecution of Boris Pasternak after he was awarded the Nobel Prize for the novel “Doctor Zhivago.” “...Now one incident has clearly shown me - as well as everyone who reads newspapers - what a single person can come to in our time. I mean the case of the poet Pasternak, which was written about in all the newspapers and talked on the radio more than once at the end of October and beginning of November. ...He had hardly appeared in literature for 15 years; but in the 20s everyone knew him, and he was one of the most popular poets. He always had a tendency towards loneliness, towards proud solitude; He always considered himself above the “crowd” and retreated more and more into his shell. Apparently, he completely broke away from our reality, lost touch with the era and with the people, and this is how it all ended. I wrote a novel that was unacceptable for our Soviet magazines; sold it abroad; received the Nobel Prize for it / and it is clear to everyone that the prize was awarded to him mainly for the ideological orientation of his novel /. A whole epic began; enthusiasm, immoderate, from journalists in capitalist countries; indignation and curses / perhaps also immoderate and not fair in everything / on our part; as a result, he was expelled from the Writers' Union, covered in mud from head to toe, called Judas the traitor, and even proposed to expel him from the Soviet Union; he wrote a letter to Khrushchev in which he asked not to apply this measure to him. Now, they say, he is sick after such a shake-up.

Meanwhile, I am sure, as far as I know Pasternak, that he is not such a scoundrel, and not a counter-revolutionary, and not an enemy of his homeland; but he lost touch with her and, as a result, allowed himself to be tactless: he sold abroad a novel that was rejected in the Union. I think he’s having a really hard time right now.” This suggests that not everyone had an unambiguous view of what was happening. An interesting fact is that the author of this entry was herself repressed and subsequently rehabilitated. It is also important to note that the letter is addressed to a military man (censorship is possible). It is difficult to say whether the author supports the actions of the Government, or is simply afraid to write too much... But it can definitely be noted that she does not adhere to any side when analyzing the situation. And even from the analysis, we can say that many understood that the actions of the Soviet leadership were at least inadequate. And the author’s softness towards the Authority can be explained by low awareness (if not fear). Official “limiters” also operated in other spheres of culture. Not only writers and poets (A. Voznesensky, D. Granin, V. Dudintsev, E. Evtushenko, S. Kirsanov, K. . Paustovsky, etc.), but also sculptors, artists, directors (E. Neizvestny, R. Falk, M. Khutsiev), philosophers, historians. All this had a restraining influence on the development of domestic literature and art, showed the limits and true meaning of the “thaw” in spiritual life, created a nervous atmosphere among creative workers, and gave rise to distrust in the party’s policy in the field of culture. Architecture also developed in complex ways. Several high-rise buildings were built in Moscow, including Moscow State University. M.V. Lomonosov. In those years, metro stations were also considered as a means of aesthetic education of people.

At the end of the 50s, with the transition to standard construction, “excesses” and elements of the palace style disappeared from architecture. In the fall of 1962, Khrushchev spoke in favor of revising Zhdanov’s resolutions on culture and at least partially abolishing censorship. A real shock for millions of people was the publication of A. I. Solzhenitsyn’s works “One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich” and “Matrenin’s Yard”, which fully posed the problems of overcoming the Stalinist legacy in the everyday life of Soviet people. In an effort to prevent the massive nature of anti-Stalinist publications, which affected not only Stalinism, but also the entire totalitarian system, Khrushchev specifically in his speeches drew the attention of writers to the fact that “this is a very dangerous topic and difficult material” and it is necessary to deal with it, “respecting the feeling measures". Khrushchev wanted to achieve the rehabilitation of prominent party figures who were repressed in 1936-1938: Bukharin, Zinoviev, Kamenev and others. However, he failed to achieve everything, since at the end of 1962 the orthodox ideologists went on the offensive, and Khrushchev was forced to go on the defensive. His retreat was marked by a number of high-profile episodes: from the first clash with a group of abstract artists to a series of meetings between party leaders and cultural representatives. Then for the second time he was forced to publicly renounce most of his criticism of Stalin. This was his defeat. The defeat was completed by the Plenum of the Central Committee in June 1963, which was entirely devoted to problems of ideology. It was stated that there was no peaceful coexistence of ideologies, there is no and there cannot be. From that moment on, books that could not be published in the open press began to circulate from hand to hand in typewritten versions. Thus was born “samizdat” - the first sign of a phenomenon that would later become known as dissidence. From then on, pluralism of opinions was doomed to disappear.

“Thaw” in the spiritual sphere of life of Soviet society (2nd half of the 50s and early 60s) 3-9

Foreign policy of the USSR in 1953-1964. 10-13

List of used literature 14

“Thaw” in the spiritual sphere of life of Soviet society .

Stalin's death occurred at a time when the political and economic system created in the 30s, having exhausted the possibilities of its development, gave rise to serious economic difficulties and socio-political tension in society. N.S. became the head of the Secretariat of the Central Committee. Khrushchev. From the very first days, the new leadership took steps to combat the abuses of past years. The policy of de-Stalinization began. This period of history is usually called the “thaw”.

Among the first initiatives of the Khrushchev administration was the reorganization in April 1954 of the MGB into the State Security Committee under the USSR Council of Ministers, which was accompanied by a significant change in personnel. Some of the leaders of the punitive agencies were put on trial for fabricating false “cases” (former Minister of State Security V.N. Merkulov, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Internal Affairs V. Kobulov, Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia V.G. Dekanozov, etc.), prosecutorial supervision was introduced over State Security Service. In the center, in the republics and regions, it was placed under the vigilant control of the relevant party committees (Central Committee, regional committees, regional committees), in other words, under the control of the partyocracy.

In 1956-1957 Political charges against repressed peoples are dropped and their statehood is restored. This did not affect the Volga Germans and Crimean Tatars at that time: such charges were dropped from them in 1964 and 1967, respectively, and they have not gained their own statehood to this day. In addition, the country's leadership did not take effective measures for the open, organized return of yesterday's special settlers to their historical lands, did not fully resolve the problems of their fair resettlement, thereby laying another mine under interethnic relations in the USSR.

In September 1953, the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, by a special decree, opened the possibility of revising the decisions of the former collegiums of the OGPU, the “troikas” of the NKVD and the “special meeting” under the NKVD-MGB-MVD, which had been abolished by that time. By 1956, about 16 thousand people were released from the camps and rehabilitated posthumously. After the 20th Congress of the CPSU (February 1956), which debunked the “personality cult of Stalin,” the scale of rehabilitation was increased, and millions of political prisoners gained their long-awaited freedom.

In the bitter words of A. A. Akhmatova, “two Russias looked into each other’s eyes: the one that imprisoned, and the one that was imprisoned.” The return of a huge mass of innocent people to society has confronted the authorities with the need to explain the reasons for the tragedy that befell the country and people. Such an attempt was made in N. S. Khrushchev’s report “On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences” at a closed meeting of the 20th Congress, as well as in a special resolution of the CPSU Central Committee adopted on June 30, 1956. Everything, however, came down to the “deformation” of socialism due to the peculiarities of the post-revolutionary situation and the personal qualities of J.V. Stalin; the only task put forward was the “restoration of Leninist norms” in the activities of the party and the state. This explanation was, of course, extremely limited. It diligently avoided the social roots of the phenomenon, superficially defined as the “cult of personality,” its organic connection with the totalitarian-bureaucratic nature of the social system created by the communists.

And yet, the very fact of public condemnation of the lawlessness and crimes of senior officials that had been happening in the country for decades made an exceptional impression, marked the beginning of fundamental changes in public consciousness, its moral cleansing, and gave a powerful creative impulse to the scientific and artistic intelligentsia. Under the pressure of these changes, one of the cornerstones in the foundation of “state socialism” began to shake - the total control of the authorities over the spiritual life and way of thinking of people.

At the readings of N. S. Khrushchev’s closed report in primary party organizations held since March 1956 with the invitation of Komsomol members, many, despite the fear that had been instilled in society for decades, openly expressed their thoughts. Questions were raised about the party’s responsibility for violations of the law, about the bureaucracy of the Soviet system, about the resistance of officials to eliminating the consequences of the “cult of personality,” about incompetent interference in the affairs of literature, art, and about many other things that had previously been forbidden to discuss publicly.

Student circles began to emerge in Moscow and Leningrad, where their participants tried to comprehend the political mechanism of Soviet society, actively presented their views at Komsomol meetings, and read out abstracts they had prepared. In the capital, groups of young people gathered in the evenings at the monument to Mayakovsky, recited their poems, and held political discussions. There were many other manifestations of the sincere desire of young people to understand the reality around them.

The “thaw” was especially noticeable in literature and art. The good name of many cultural figures - victims of lawlessness - is being restored: V. E. Meyerhold, B. A. Pilnyak, O. E. Mandelstam, I. E. Babel, etc. After a long break, books by A. A. Akhmatova and M. began to be published. M. Zoshchenko. A wide audience gained access to works that were undeservedly suppressed or previously unknown. Poems by S. A. Yesenin were published, distributed after his death mainly in lists. Almost forgotten music of Western European and Russian composers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries began to sound in conservatories and concert halls. At an art exhibition in Moscow, organized in 1962, paintings from the 20s and 30s were exhibited, which had been collecting dust in storage rooms for many years.

The revival of the cultural life of society was facilitated by the emergence of new literary and artistic magazines: “Youth”, “Foreign Literature”, “Moscow”, “Neva”, “Soviet Screen”, “Musical Life”, etc. Already well-known magazines, previously in total "New World" (editor-in-chief A. T. Tvardovsky), which turned into a tribune of all democratically minded creative forces in the country. It was there that in 1962 the short story, but strong in humanistic sound, by former Gulag prisoner A. I. Solzhenitsyn about the fate of a Soviet political prisoner, “One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich,” was published. Shocking millions of people, it clearly and impressively showed that those who suffered most from Stalinism were the “common man” whose name the authorities swore for decades.

From the second half of the 50s. International connections of Soviet culture are noticeably expanding. The Moscow Film Festival was resumed (first held in 1935). The International Competition of Performers named after. Tchaikovsky, regularly held in Moscow since 1958. An opportunity has opened up to get acquainted with foreign artistic creativity. The exhibition of the Museum of Fine Arts was restored. Pushkin, on the eve of the war, transferred to the reserves. Exhibitions of foreign collections were held: the Dresden Gallery, museums in India, Lebanon, paintings by world celebrities (P. Picasso, etc.).

Scientific thought also intensified. From the beginning of the 50s to the end of the 60s. State spending on science increased almost 12 times, and the number of scientific workers increased six times and amounted to a quarter of all scientists in the world. Many new research institutes were opened: electronic control machines, semiconductors, high-pressure physics, nuclear research, electrochemistry, radiation and physicochemical biology. Powerful centers for rocket science and space exploration were established, where S.P. Korolev and other talented designers worked fruitfully. Institutions engaged in biological research in the field of genetics arose in the system of the USSR Academy of Sciences.

The territorial location of scientific institutions continued to change. At the end of the 50s. A large center was formed in the east of the country - the Siberian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences. It included the Far Eastern, West Siberian and East Siberian branches of the USSR Academy of Sciences, institutes of Krasnoyarsk and Sakhalin.

The works of a number of Soviet natural scientists have received worldwide recognition. In 1956, the Nobel Prize was awarded to the development by Academician N. N. Semenov of the theory of chemical chain reactions, which became the basis for the production of new compounds - plastics with properties superior to metals, synthetic resins and fibers. In 1962, the same prize was awarded to L. D. Landau for studying the theory of liquid helium. Fundamental research in the field of quantum radiophysics by N. G. Basov and A. M. Prokhorov (Nobel Prize 1964) marked a qualitative leap in the development of electronics. In the USSR, the first molecular generator was created - a laser, and color holography was discovered, giving three-dimensional images of objects. In 1957, the world's most powerful particle accelerator, the synchrophasotron, was launched. Its use led to the emergence of a new scientific direction: high and ultra-high energy physics.

Scientists in the humanities have received greater scope for scientific research. New journals are appearing in various branches of social science: “Bulletin of the History of World Culture”, “World Economy and International Relations”, “History of the USSR”, “Questions of the History of the CPSU”, “New and Contemporary History”, “Questions of Linguistics”, etc. In scientific Part of the previously hidden works of V. I. Lenin, documents of K. Marx and F. Engels were introduced into circulation. Historians have gained access to the archives. Documentary sources, historical studies on previously taboo topics (in particular, on the activities of the socialist parties of Russia), memoirs, and statistical materials were published. This contributed to the gradual overcoming of Stalinist dogmatism and the restoration, albeit partially, of the truth regarding historical events and repressed figures of the party, state and army.

Foreign policy of the USSR in 1953-1964.

After Stalin's death, there was a turn in Soviet foreign policy, expressed in recognition of the possibility of peaceful coexistence of the two systems, granting greater independence to socialist countries, and establishing broad contacts with third world countries. In 1954, Khrushchev, Bulganin and Mikoyan visited China, during which the parties agreed to expand economic cooperation. In 1955, Soviet-Yugoslav reconciliation took place. The easing of tensions between East and West was facilitated by the signing of an agreement with Austria by the USSR, USA, Great Britain and France. The USSR withdrew its troops from Austria. Austria has pledged neutrality. In June 1955, the first meeting of the leaders of the USSR, USA, Great Britain and France since Potsdam took place in Geneva, which, however, did not lead to the conclusion of any agreement. In September 1955, during the visit of German Chancellor Adenauer to the USSR, diplomatic relations were established between the two countries.

In 1955, the USSR, Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and the German Democratic Republic concluded the defensive Warsaw Pact. The countries pledged to resolve conflicts arising between them by peaceful means, cooperate in actions to ensure the peace and security of peoples, and consult on international issues affecting their common interests. United armed forces and a common command were created to direct their activities. A Political Advisory Committee was formed to coordinate foreign policy actions. Speaking at the 20th Party Congress, Khrushchev emphasized the importance of international detente and recognized the diversity of ways to build socialism. De-Stalinization in the USSR had a contradictory impact on socialist countries. In October 1956, an uprising broke out in Hungary, aimed at establishing a democratic regime in the country. This attempt was suppressed by the armed forces of the USSR and other Warsaw Pact countries. Beginning in 1956, a rift emerged in Sino-Soviet relations. The Chinese communist leadership, led by Mao Zedong, was unhappy with the criticism of Stalin and the Soviet policy of peaceful coexistence. Mao Zedong's opinion was shared by the Albanian leadership.

In relations with the West, the USSR proceeded from the principle of peaceful coexistence and simultaneous economic competition between the two systems, which in the future, according to the Soviet leadership, should have led to the victory of socialism throughout the world. In 1959, the first visit of a Soviet leader to the United States took place. N. S. Khrushchev was received by President D. Eisenhower. On the other hand, both sides actively developed their weapons program. In 1953, the USSR announced the creation of a hydrogen bomb, and in 1957 it successfully tested the world's first intercontinental ballistic missile. The launch of the Soviet satellite in October 1957 in this sense literally shocked the Americans, who realized that from now on their cities were within the reach of Soviet missiles. Early 60s turned out to be particularly stressful.

First, the flight of an American spy plane over the territory of the USSR was interrupted in the Yekaterinburg area by an accurate missile hit. The visit strengthened the international prestige of the USSR. At the same time, West Berlin remained an acute problem in relations between East and West. In August 1961, the East German government erected a wall in Berlin, violating the Potsdam Agreements. The tense situation in Berlin continued for several more years. The deepest crisis in relations between the great powers after 1945 arose in the fall of 1962. It was caused by the deployment of Soviet missiles capable of carrying atomic weapons in Cuba. After negotiations, the Cuban missile crisis was resolved. The easing of tensions in the world led to the conclusion of a number of international treaties, including the 1963 agreement in Moscow banning nuclear weapons testing in the atmosphere, space and under water. In a short time, over a hundred states joined the Moscow Treaty. The expansion of political and economic ties with other countries and the development of personal contacts between heads of state led to a short-term easing of the international situation.

The most important tasks of the USSR in the international arena were: the speedy reduction of the military threat and the end of the Cold War, the expansion of international relations, and the strengthening of the influence of the USSR in the world as a whole. This could only be achieved through the implementation of a flexible and dynamic foreign policy based on powerful economic and military potential (primarily nuclear).

The positive shift in the international situation that emerged from the mid-50s reflected the process of formation of new approaches to solving complex international problems that accumulated over the first post-war decade. The renewed Soviet leadership (from February 1957, for 28 years, A.A. Gromyko was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the USSR) assessed Stalin's foreign policy as unrealistic, inflexible and even dangerous.

Much attention was paid to the development of relations with the states of the “third world” (developing countries) India, Indonesia, Burma, Afghanistan, etc. The Soviet Union provided them with assistance in the construction of industrial and agricultural facilities (participation in the construction of a metallurgical plant in India, the Aswan Dam in Egypt and etc.). During N.S.'s stay Khrushchev as head of state, with financial and technical assistance from the USSR, about 6,000 enterprises were built in different countries of the world.

In 1964, the policy of reforms carried out by N.S. ended. Khrushchev. The transformations of this period were the first and most significant attempt to reform Soviet society. The desire of the country's leadership to overcome the Stalinist legacy and renew political and social structures was only partially successful. The reforms initiated from above did not bring the expected effect. The deterioration of the economic situation caused dissatisfaction with the reform policy and its initiator N.S. Khrushchev. In October 1964 N.S. Khrushchev was relieved of all his posts and dismissed.

Bibliography:

History of the Soviet state N. Vert. M. 1994.

Chronicle of the foreign policy of the USSR 1917-1957 M. 1978

Our Fatherland. Experience of political history. Part 2. - M., 1991.

Nikita Sergeevich Khrushchev Materials for the biography of M. 1989

From thaw to stagnation. Sat. memories. - M., 1990.

Light and shadows of the “great decade” N. S. Khrushchev and his time. M. 1989.

Reference manual for high school students and applicants V.N. Glazyev-Voronezh, 1994

N.S. Khrushchev Political biography Roy Medvedev M., 1994

Overcoming Stalinism in literature and art, the development of science, Soviet sports, the development of education.

Overcoming Stalinism in literature and art.

The first post-Stalin decade was marked by serious changes in spiritual life. The famous Soviet writer I. G. Ehrenburg called this period the “thaw” that came after the long and harsh Stalinist “winter.” And at the same time, it was not “spring” with its full-flowing and free “spill” of thoughts and feelings, but rather a “thaw”, which could again be followed by a “light frost”.

Representatives of literature were the first to respond to the changes that began in society. Even before the 20th Congress of the CPSU, works appeared that marked the birth of a new direction in Soviet literature - renovation. Its essence was to address the inner world of a person, his everyday worries and problems, and unresolved issues of the country's development. One of the first such works was V. Pomerantsev’s article “On Sincerity in Literature,” published in 1953 in the journal “New World,” where he first raised the question that “to write honestly means not to think about the expression of high and short readers." The question of the need for the existence of various literary schools and movements was also raised here.

Articles by V. Ovechkin (back in 1952), F. Abramov, and works by I. Ehrenburg (“The Thaw”), V. Panova (“Seasons”), and F. Panferov ( “Volga Mother River”), etc. Their authors moved away from the traditional varnishing of people’s real lives. For the first time in many years, the question was raised about the destructiveness of the atmosphere that had developed in the country. However, the authorities recognized the publication of these works as “harmful” and removed A. Tvardovsky from the management of the magazine.

Life itself raised the question of the need to change the leadership style of the Writers' Union and its relations with the CPSU Central Committee. Attempts by the head of the Writers' Union A. A. Fadeev to achieve this led to his disgrace and then to suicide. In his suicide letter, he noted that art in the USSR was “ruined by the self-confident and ignorant leadership of the party,” and writers, even the most recognized ones, were reduced to the status of boys, destroyed, “ideologically scolded and called it partisanship.” V. Dudintsev (“Not by Bread Alone”), D. Granin (“Seekers”), E. Dorosh (“Village Diary”) spoke about this in their works.

Space exploration and the development of the latest technology have made science fiction a favorite genre among readers. Novels and stories by I. A. Efremov, A. P. Kazantsev, brothers A. N. and B. N. Strugatsky and others lifted the veil of the future for the reader, allowing them to turn to the inner world of a scientist and a person. The authorities were looking for new methods of influencing the intelligentsia. Since 1957, meetings between the leadership of the Central Committee and literary and artistic figures have become regular. The personal tastes of Khrushchev, who made long-winded speeches at these meetings, acquired the character of official assessments. The unceremonious intervention did not find support not only among the majority of the participants in these meetings and among the intelligentsia in general, but also among the broadest sections of the population.

After the 20th Congress of the CPSU, ideological pressure was somewhat weakened in the field of musical art, painting, and cinematography. Responsibility for the “excesses” of previous years was assigned to Stalin, Beria, Zhdanov, Molotov, Malenkov and others.

In May 1958, the Central Committee of the CPSU issued a resolution “On correcting errors in the evaluation of the operas “Great Friendship”, “Bogdan Khmelnitsky” and “From the Heart”, which recognized the previous assessments of D. Shostakovich, S. Prokofiev, A. as unsubstantiated and unfair. Khachaturyan, V. Muradeli, V. Shebalin, G. Popov, N. Myaskovsky and others. At the same time, calls from the intelligentsia to repeal other decisions of the 40s. on ideological issues were rejected. It was confirmed that they “played a huge role in the development of artistic creativity along the path of socialist realism” and “retain their current significance.” The policy of the “thaw” in spiritual life, therefore, had very definite boundaries.

From N. S. Khrushchev’s speeches to literary and artistic figures

This does not mean at all that now, after the condemnation of the cult of personality, the time has come for things to take their course, that the reins of government have been weakened, that the social ship is sailing at the will of the waves and everyone can be willful and behave as they please. No. The party has and will firmly pursue the Leninist course it developed, uncompromisingly opposing any ideological vacillations.

One of the striking examples of the permissible limits of the “thaw” was the “Pasternak case”. The publication in the West of his banned novel Doctor Zhivago and the awarding of the Nobel Prize put the writer literally outside the law. In October 1958, B. Pasternak was expelled from the Writers' Union. He was forced to refuse the Nobel Prize to avoid deportation from the country. A real shock for millions of people was the publication of A. I. Solzhenitsyn’s works “One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich” and “Matrenin’s Court”, which raised the problem of overcoming the Stalinist legacy in the everyday life of Soviet people.

In an effort to prevent the massive nature of anti-Stalin publications, which affected not only Stalinism, but also the entire totalitarian system, Khrushchev in his speeches drew the attention of writers to the fact that “this is a very dangerous topic and difficult material” and it is necessary to deal with it, “observing a sense of proportion.” " Official “limiters” also operated in other spheres of culture. Not only writers and poets (A. Voznesensky, D. Granin, V. Dudintsev, E. Evtushenko, S. Kirsanov) were regularly subjected to sharp criticism for “ideological dubiousness”, “underestimation of the leading role of the party”, “formalism”, etc. , K. Paustovsky, etc.), but also sculptors, artists, directors (E. Neizvestny, R. Falk, M. Khutsiev), philosophers, historians.

Nevertheless, during these years, many literary works appeared (“The Fate of a Man” by M. Sholokhov, “Silence” by Yu. Bondarev), films (“The Cranes Are Flying” by M. Kalatozov, “The Forty-First,” “The Ballad of a Soldier,” “Pure sky" by G. Chukhrai), paintings that have received national recognition precisely because of their life-affirming power and optimism, appeal to the inner world and everyday life of a person.

Development of science.

Party directives that focused on the development of scientific and technological progress stimulated the development of domestic science. In 1956, the International Research Center was opened in Dubna (Joint Institute for Nuclear Research). In 1957, the Siberian Branch of the USSR Academy of Sciences was formed with a wide network of institutes and laboratories. Other scientific centers were also created. Only in the system of the USSR Academy of Sciences for 1956-1958. 48 new research institutes were organized. Their geography has also expanded (Urals, Kola Peninsula, Karelia, Yakutia). By 1959, there were about 3,200 scientific institutions in the country. The number of scientific workers in the country was approaching 300 thousand. Among the greatest achievements of Russian science of this time are the creation of the most powerful synchrophasotron in the world (1957); launching of the world's first nuclear icebreaker "Lenin"; launch of the first artificial Earth satellite into space (October 4, 1957), sending animals into space (November 1957), the first human flight into space (April 12, 1961); launch of the world's first jet passenger airliner Tu-104; creation of high-speed passenger hydrofoil ships (“Raketa”), etc. Work in the field of genetics was resumed.

However, as before, priority in scientific developments was given to the interests of the military-industrial complex. Not only the country's largest scientists (S. Korolev, M. Keldysh, A. Tupolev, V. Chelomey, A. Sakharov, I. Kurchatov, etc.), but also Soviet intelligence worked for his needs. Thus, the space program was only an “addendum” to the program for creating means of delivering nuclear weapons. Thus, the scientific and technological achievements of the “Khrushchev era” laid the foundation for achieving military-strategic parity with the United States in the future.

The years of the “thaw” were marked by triumphant victories of Soviet athletes. Already the first participation of Soviet track and field athletes in the Olympics in Helsinki (1952) was marked by 22 gold, 30 silver and 19 bronze medals. In the unofficial team competition, the USSR team scored the same number of points as the USA team. The first gold medalist of the Olympics was discus thrower N. Romashkova (Ponomareva). The best athlete of the Melbourne Olympics (1956) was the Soviet runner V. Kuts, who became a two-time champion in the 5 and 10 km running. Gold medals at the Rome Olympics (1960) were awarded to P. Bolotnikov (running), sisters T. and I. Press (discus throwing, hurdles), V. Kapitonov (cycling), B. Shakhlin and L. Latynina (gymnastics) , Y. Vlasov (weightlifting), V. Ivanov (rowing), etc.

Brilliant results and world fame were achieved at the Tokyo Olympics (1964): in the high jump V. Brumel, weightlifter L. Zhabotinsky, gymnast L. Latynina and others. These were the years of triumph of the great Soviet football goalkeeper L. Yashin, who played for the sports team a career of more than 800 matches (including 207 without conceding goals) and becoming a silver medalist of the European Cup (1964) and champion of the Olympic Games (1956).

The successes of Soviet athletes caused unprecedented popularity of the competition, which created an important prerequisite for the development of mass sports. Encouraging these sentiments, the country's leadership paid attention to the construction of stadiums and sports palaces, the massive opening of sports sections and children's and youth sports schools. This laid a good foundation for future world victories of Soviet athletes.

Development of education.

As the foundations of industrial society were built in the USSR, the system that emerged in the 30s. the education system needed updating. It had to correspond to the prospects for the development of science and technology, new technologies, and changes in the social and humanitarian sphere.

However, this was in conflict with the official policy of continuing extensive economic development, which required new workers every year to develop enterprises under construction.

Education reform was largely conceived to solve this problem. In December 1958, a law was passed according to which, instead of a seven-year plan, a compulsory eight-year plan was created polytechnic school. Young people received secondary education by graduating from either a school for working (rural) youth on the job, or technical schools that operated on the basis of an eight-year school, or a secondary three-year comprehensive labor school with industrial training. For those wishing to continue their education at a university, mandatory work experience was introduced.

Thus, the severity of the problem of labor influx into production was temporarily removed. However, for enterprises this created new problems with staff turnover and low levels of labor and technological discipline among young workers.

Source of the article: Textbook by A.A Danilov “History of Russia”. 9th grade

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March 5, 1953 Stalin died. With the death of Stalin, an entire era in the life of the country ended. Stalin’s heirs, who came to power after his death, on the one hand, understood that preserving or strengthening the system was impossible and even disastrous, but, on the other hand, they were ready to abandon only some of its most odious elements (the cult of the leader’s personality, mass terror and repressions, complete suppression of commodity-money relations, etc.). The first to make proposals for partial rehabilitation of prisoners, revision of the fundamentals of foreign policy, and adjustment of agricultural policy were G. M. Malenkov, who became Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR after the death of Stalin, and L. P. Beria, from the late 30s. in charge of the punitive system. In July 1953, Beria was arrested and soon executed. The First Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, N.S. Khrushchev, who was gaining strength, managed to achieve victory over his main competitor, Malenkov, by 1955. By this time, tens of thousands of people had been released from prisons and camps, victims of the “Doctors’ Plot”, “Leningrad Affair”, and military leaders convicted after the Great Patriotic War were rehabilitated. Transformations were promised to agriculture: purchase prices were raised, debts were written off, investment in the collective farm economy was increased, taxes on personal subsidiary plots were reduced, and it was allowed to increase its size fivefold. The development of virgin and fallow lands began in Kazakhstan and Western Siberia (1954).

On February 25, 1956, at a closed meeting of the 20th Congress of the CPSU, N. S. Khrushchev made a report “On the cult of personality and its consequences.” The report cited Lenin’s “testament” (“Letter to the Congress”), criticizing Stalin, talking about the execution of the overwhelming majority of the delegates of the 17th Congress, Stalin’s behavior in the first days of the war, and the repressions of the 40s. and much more.

Khrushchev's report was accusatory in nature and made a strong impression on the congress delegates. It was decided not to make the contents of the report known to the people; they limited themselves to reading it at meetings of party activists. However, a few days after the congress, the full text of Khrushchev’s report “On the Cult of Personality and Its Consequences” appeared in foreign newspapers and was broadcast by Western radio stations. In our country, Khrushchev’s report was published only in 1989.

After the 20th Congress, the process of de-Stalinization went faster. Many political prisoners were released from the camps, and many categories of special settlers were removed from the register. The Central Committee of the CPSU and the Council of Ministers of the USSR adopted a resolution that improved the legal status of former Soviet prisoners of war. In 1957, the Kalmyk, Kabardino-Balkarian, Karachay-Cherkess, Checheno-Ingush Autonomous Republics were restored. The moral climate was improving and favorable conditions were created for the development of science and culture, which allowed publicists to define this period of Soviet history as the “thaw.” The good name of many scientists and artists was restored, and the banned works of A. A. Akhmatova, M. M. Zoshchenko, and S. A. Yesenin began to be published.

In the second half of the 50s. International cultural ties expanded significantly: foreign film festivals, theatrical tours, and exhibitions of foreign fine arts were held in the USSR. In 1957, the World Festival of Youth and Students took place in Moscow. Soviet scientific and cultural figures began to travel abroad again. Informal circles of student youth emerged in Moscow and Leningrad, whose participants sought to better understand the political mechanism of the Soviet system. In Moscow, young people began to gather at the monument to V.V. Mayakovsky, erected in 1958. Participants in these meetings read their poems, prose, and held political discussions. It was from the student environment that those who later came to be called dissidents emerged.

In 1959, a new charter of the CPSU was adopted, which for the first time spoke about the possibility of internal party discussions, personnel renewal, etc. In 1961, the XXII Congress of the CPSU, having adopted a new party program - the “program for the construction of communism”, adopted a resolution on the reburial of Stalin’s body on Krasnaya square and about intensifying the fight against the cult of personality. Molotov, Kaganovich and others were expelled from the party. Finally, in 1962, Khrushchev proposed to begin developing a draft of a new Constitution.

The social policy pursued by Khrushchev was also a departure from the Stalinist model: the passport system was extended to collective farmers, pensions were streamlined, mass housing construction was launched, and the resettlement of communal apartments began.

However, de-Stalinization was not consistent. In industrial policy, Khrushchev adhered to the priority development of heavy and defense industries and retained command management methods. In the agricultural sector in 1958-1959. there was a return to administrative methods of management. The famous campaign for the forced introduction of corn, the reorganization of machine and tractor stations, and the fight against private farming were manifestations of a directive leadership style and caused enormous harm to agriculture. The consequences of ill-conceived decisions were difficulties in supplying cities with food and bread, and grain purchases began abroad (1963). There was an increase in retail prices for products. The resulting unrest in Novocherkassk was suppressed by force (protest participants were shot).

The course towards de-Stalinization in the sphere of culture, ideology, and spiritual life was inconsistent. The “Thaw” was perceived with caution; it was seen as an undesirable “ferment of minds”, “undermining the foundations”. That is why an ideological campaign was launched against B. L. Pasternak, who published the novel “Doctor Zhivago” abroad, abstract artists were ridiculed, and writers and poets who tried to move away from outdated dogmas were criticized. “I am a Stalinist in culture,” Khrushchev himself said. But at the same time, it was he who gave permission for the publication of A. I. Solzhenitsyn’s story “One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich,” directed against Stalinism.

Khrushchev was relieved of his post as First Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR at the Plenum of the Central Committee in October 1964. The totalitarian system inherited from the reign of Stalin underwent some changes, but essentially did not change. The spiritual and cultural life of society during the Khrushchev “thaw” was of a contradictory nature. On the one hand, the process of renewal and liberalization in politics could not but cause a revival of culture, a weakening of ideological control, and the rise of science and education. On the other hand, the general approach to the cultural sphere was distinguished by the previous desire to place it at the service of official ideology. Nevertheless, especially before the beginning of the 1960s, there was a spiritual revival of the creative intelligentsia. The spiritual center of the sixties was the magazine “New World,” headed by A. T. Tvardovsky. The Sovremennik Theater began operating in Moscow under the direction of O. N. Efremov. Many writers, artists, and scientists were able to visit abroad. Memoirs of Soviet military leaders began to be published: in previous years, none of the statesmen and military leaders even dared to write down their memories. In historical science, there was a departure from the dogmas of the “Short Course on the History of the All-Union Communist Party (Bolsheviks)”; the role of Stalin in the history of the Soviet state was revised. New magazines “Yunost”, “Moscow”, “Our Contemporary”, “Young Guard”, “History of the USSR”, “New and Contemporary History”, “Culture and Life”, almanacs and newspapers began to be published. New creative unions were created. In 1958, the CPSU Central Committee adopted a resolution “On correcting errors in the evaluation of the operas “Great Friendship”, “Bogdan Khmelnitsky”, “With all my Heart”. A sign of the times was the rehabilitation of some cultural figures convicted under Stalin. Forbidden poems by S. A. Yesenin, D. A. Akhmatova, M. I. Tsvetaeva, stories by M. M. Zoshchenko and others were published. During the “thaw”, F. A. Abramov, V. P. first announced themselves. Astafiev, E. A. Evtushenko, R. I. Rozhdestvensky, A. A. Voznesensky, B. A. Akhmadulina, V. P. Aksenov and others. However, the inconsistency of cultural policy made itself felt. Some works of literature and art were received with hostility by N. S. Khrushchev, his advisers and a number of cultural figures (novels by V. D. Dudintsev “Not by Bread Alone”, B. L. Pasternak “Doctor Zhivago”, film by M. M. Khutsiev “ Zastava Ilyich”, etc.). The talented painters E. Belyutin, B. Zhutovsky, and the sculptor E. Neizvestny undeservedly fell into disgrace. There were significant achievements in the development of science and technology, especially in astronautics (the launch of an artificial satellite; the flight of Yu. A. Gagarin; advances in rocket science). A large international research center was created in Dubna - the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research. Much attention was paid to secondary and higher education: tuition fees at universities, technical schools and senior secondary schools were abolished; instead of seven years, universal compulsory eight-year education was introduced. The number of universities and scientific institutions has increased. The reform of the general education school that began in 1958 (eleven-year instead of ten-year) with an emphasis on industrial training and vocational training of students was not scientifically substantiated. In 1964 it was abandoned. In general, the spiritual emancipation of Soviet people during the period under review was not and could not be complete. In the early 1960s. There was a strengthening of ideological dictates in the field of literature and art, and intolerance towards dissent appeared. These years marked the beginning of the dissident movement.