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PHJ № 4 (48) 2025 — N. V. Tikhomirov “THE WORK IN THE VILLAGE IS VERY, VERY WEAK”: THE SOVIET PEASANTRY IN THE REPORTS OF STUDENTS OF THE LENINGRAD POLYTECHNIC

Previously unknown to researchers, documents containing information about the life of the Russian countryside in the conditions of Soviet modernization of the first post-revolutionary decade are being introduced into scientific circulation. The publication presents the reports of students of the Leningrad Polytechnic of Railways, prepared by them based on the results of their work in practice in the villages of the North-Western region of Russia in 1924. The records reflect various aspects of everyday life, leisure, economic relations and the mentality of rural inhabitants. These materials help to understand better the general state of the Russian peasant world during this historical period and the problems faced by the leadership of the USSR in implementing the socialist restructuring of the country. The reports reflect the contradictions that have arisen in connection with the introduction of a new taxation system, cooperative construction, the implementation of the ideas of the cultural revolution, and the training of personnel for party and Komsomol work. The publication aims to expand the scientific understanding of the participation of Soviet students in the implementation of Soviet government activities in rural areas. These reports quantitatively and qualitatively complement the existing database of sources used by historians to study the Russian peasantry in the 20th century. Their involvement in research practice will make it possible to strengthen the anthropological component of modern peasant studies and will serve as information support for scientific research in the field of rural everyday life, the everyday thinking of rural inhabitants, and contradictions in the interaction of the city and the countryside. The published materials will also be useful for clarifying the specifics of understanding the problems of rural areas by party and Komsomol activists and their tasks in solving them.

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PHJ № 4 (48) 2025 — Yu. V. Kim. LANDOWNER, ARISTOCRAT, DECEMBRIST, DREAMER: V. A. MUSIN-PUSHKIN IN THE CONTEXT OF PRESCRIBED STATUSES AND NEW ROLES

Count V. A. Musin-Pushkin (1798–1854), a representative of the “young” generation of Decembrists, did not participate in the war with Napoleon or the foreign campaigns of the Russian army due to his age. The subject’s environment was that of an aristocratic family (his father being Catherine’s nobleman, archaeographer Count A. I. Musin-Pushkin). The material well-being that surrounded the count from childhood predetermined the range of occupations and spheres of activity of the young man from a wealthy family. Notwithstanding, V. A. Musin-Pushkin defiantly diverged from the conventional mores of the noble aristocracy, manifesting an unabashedly libertarian disposition and forging an autonomous trajectory for himself. The article, which is based on unpublished sources from Russian archives (namely, the Russian State Archive of Ancient Acts, the Russian State Historical Archive, the State Archive of the Yaroslavl Region, and the Central State Archive of the City of Moscow), reveals the material conditions of V. A. Musin-Pushkin, his family atmosphere, and a picture of his daily activities, interests, and inclinations. The article also traces the fate of the young man after his release from arrest in the Decembrist case. In the challenging environment of supervision, V. A. Musin-Pushkin encountered his future wife and attained personal contentment despite the presence of impediments and adversity. Following the matrimony, the count and countess took up residence in the estate known as “Borisogleb” in the Mologsky district of the Yaroslavl province. The article discusses the activities of the Musin-Pushkin spouses in the management of the estate, as well as markers of the economic status and estate life.

PHJ No 4 (36) 2022 — E.Yu.Zubkova. From a “survival society” to a “consumption society”: the transformation of conditions and practices of consumption in the USSR (1940s–1960s)

The article considers the main tendencies of transformation of conditions and practices of consumption in the USSR as one of the key indicators of change of the standard of living and quality of life of the population — from the end of the Second World War to the end of the 1960s. Based on the analysis of scientific literature, statistical data and the results of sociological research, the conclusion is made about the gradual formation in the USSR of a specific, “Soviet” variant of consumption society — “society of consumption under deficit”.

PHJ № 3 (35) 2022 – V. V. Zdanovich. The history of everyday life in the Nazi-occupied territory of Belarus in the works of Belarusian historians

The article analyzes the works of Belarusian historians devoted to the life history of urban and rural residents of Belarus during the Nazi occupation in 1941–1944. The analysis carried out shows that in the Soviet period, according to the party guidelines, the life of different categories of the population in the occupied territory was considered in Soviet historical literature as a daily battle with the enemy. A characteristic feature of the Belarusian period was the development of new directions in the study of the problem, detailed coverage of various aspects of the occupation regime, the consideration of which in Soviet historiography was determined by brevity.