Sheila Fitzpatrick was one of the most prominent social historians of the epoch of Stalinism and Soviet Union. The author began to write from the cultural prospect and all her sociological researches relate to the topic of a culture. The issue of the Russian Revolution had a great resonance in the world and influenced many historical processes in the world. The investigation of its main factors was central to Fitzpatrick in her scientific research.
Sheila Fitzpatrick asks the question: “When does the Russian revolution end?” (2). Finding the answer on this question is the main argument of the book. The author investigates if it was at the end of the October revolution in 1917 or after the Civil War in 1920. She questions if Stalin’s revolution was a part of it? In general, the research shows the events of the period between 1917 and 1937 and bases on the investigation of social factors and changings on the ground of political and sociological changes in the country.
The book The Russian Revolution was written when the Soviet Union collapsed. It gave possibility to open sources previously hidden and show the truth about the regime. The book describes the major events from the history of the Soviet Union, revolutions in the Russian Empire and the problems of social struggle. It provides information about the years before the First World War, investigates the causes and consequences of the October and February revolutions, the political crises and the Civil War under the Bolshevik’s control. Sheila Fitzpatrick described all social problems under the rule of the Bolsheviks. She wrote about the discipline of retreat, the problems of bureaucracy before the Stalin’s revolution and covered the topics of collectivization and industrialization under the leadership of Stalin.
So, according to the book, Russia before the era of revolutions was a territory of various cultural and historical regions, deeply controversial. One of the main reasons of this specificity was the absence of sustainable mechanisms of social regulation that could have provided at least a relative stability, unity and continuity in the development of a society.
The book reflects the most important events from the contemporary point of view and shows the facts that became open to the world in 1991. The critic of the author is uncensored and strong. According to the author, the final transition to class society occurred in 1917 (62). She described all social problems that existed in that time and impede progress for the Bolsheviks. Sheila Fitzpatrick underlined that the February revolution established a framework of dual power (45). In October the Bolsheviks overthrew the provisional government and proclaimed the establishment of the revolutionary state workers (72). According to the author, during the ideological division, the question of the role of intelligence in a society was raised. Sheila Fitzpatrick wrote about it in historical perspectives. The historical destiny of any revolution is to destroy outdated order and clear the way to reforms. During the Russian Revolution, the results of the revolutionary updates were very far from the declared objectives. New regime established in Russia was a very influential political force, that supported social chaos and used it to build communism. Refusing to characterize the revolution as socialistic, the author argued that it opened the way for future migration to socialism in Russia (68). After the revolution, the task was to create the preconditions for this transition. However, the Bolsheviks had not immediately understood it. The Bolsheviks found the main nerve of the soul of the Russian people, which led to the movement of people's enthusiasm, allowed Russia to not only survive, but also to adhere to the national and state power. Thus, the share of Russia in the 20th century was the greatest tension force in the fight for the national-state, spiritual and moral survival (83).
Culture at the turn of the 19th century and in the first decades of the 20th century reflected all the complexity and contradictions of the epoch full of acute social conflicts and political battles that have brought to people’s consciousness new traits and characteristics. However, this time of a spiritual Renaissance, had the atmosphere marked by the extraordinary takeoff of spirituality and culture.
The variety of forces in the political arena during the revolutions created the special nature of the Russian Revolution and had an impact on culture and the spirit of its ideological leaders. The author discovered the ways of for sociocultural development of the country in time of revolutionary changings. The complexity and contradictions of the historical reality led to a diversity of cultural-historical process. The book is unique in the issues it covers. It is the first complex investigation of the factors and consequences of the Russian Revolution. It researches its main events in socio-political and cultural meaning.
References
Fitzpatrick, Sheila. The Russian Revolution. 2nd ed. Oxford: New York, 1994.
