Soviet Political Rituals and Daily Practices

Abstract

The purpose of this article is the analysis of the Soviet political rituals and daily practices that developed under their influence. The methodology of the research is based on the general and special historical methods of cognition of the past involving the methods of socio-cultural and political anthropology. The scientific novelty of the paper consists in the fact that the role of various Soviet political rituals in establishing of the norms and practices of the Soviet daily life has been analyzed for the first time and the influence of the Soviet ritual culture in the Soviet regime strengthening has been found. Mass calendar holidays-rituals (October Revolution Day, Workers’ Solidarity Day) not only marked a new era in the history, but also leveled the sacredness of the Christian cycle (Christmas – Easter). Evolution of the formal organization of the Soviet ritual (from staging-imitation through carnivalization to monumental narrativization) and improvement of its semantic content (nomination – sacralization – monumentalization – memorialization) have been traced. From the beginning, festive commemoration was meant to form the Soviet identity, design the collective past and set the framework of collective memory. Official rituals gradually penetrated into the daily life (family and friendly holiday feasts, house cleaning, novelties purchase and greeting cards). Conclusions. From the beginning, the Soviet rituals were a reliable ideological weapon, an instrument of the communist indoctrination of the country’s population. Political rituals played a major role in legitimization of the Bolsheviks power, became an effective means of communication with society, enabled its consolidation within the framework of the Soviet political canon, minimized the social conflicts, leveled open dissatisfaction with the governmental authorities and assisted in the formation of ideological unanimity. Along with repressive methods, the Soviet political rituals served to create new political reality, enabled its acceptance by the masses of people, formed consciousness, encouraged relevant political actions and practices of the daily life.