Social Inequality Under Soviet Ideology: Analysis of the Discourse System in the Film "Moscú Does Not Believe in Tears"

Authors

  • Juan Miguel Valdera Gil Universidad de Granada

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37467/gka-revsocial.v1.1204

Keywords:

Socialist Social Stratification, Social Mobility, Soviet Way of Life, Socialist Meritocracy

Abstract

This article will analyze the discourse related to social inequality that appears in the Soviet film 'Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears'. Twenty years have passed since the fall of the USSR. Interviews, feature articles in the press, and documentaries remind us of the anniversary of that event. Newly published books appear seeking to explore communism's historic reach, explain the failure of Peristroika, or shed light upon lesser known aspects of Stalin. This article aims to analyze, though only in part, the discourse that existed within Soviet society about the phenomenon of inequality. Our eminently sociological approximation will be based upon a film very popular with the Russian people. Directed by Vladimir Menshov, it won the 1980 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It tells the story of three provincial girls in the late 1950s who emigrate to Moscow in search of a better life. Fernando Conde's 'Análisis sociológico del sistema de discursos' [Sociological Analysis of Discourse Systems], published by the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS) [Center for Sociological Research], will be our guide for the empirical work. We will be experimenting with this book, originally intended for discussion group and interview analysis, to see how useful it is when applied to film.

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Author Biography

Juan Miguel Valdera Gil, Universidad de Granada

Licenciado en Sociología por la Universidad de Granada, prepara su tesis doctoral sobre el sistema de estratificación social en la antigua Unión Soviética. Como alumno de intercambio estudió en la Universidad Estatal de Udmurtia (Federación Rusa). También ha realizado una estancia de investigación en el Centro de Estudios Rusos de la Universidad de Birmingham (Reino Unido). Como docente ha impartido clase de Sociología de la Educación.

References

Conde Gutiérrez del Álamo, F. (2009). Análisis sociológico del sistema de discursos. Cuaderno metodológico nº 43. Madrid: Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/S1135-57272010000100009

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Ibáñez, J (1986). “Cómo se realiza una investigación mediante grupos de discusión”, en García Ferrando, F; Ibáñez, J; Alvira, F. El análisis de la realidad social. Alianza: Madrid. 2005.

Inkeles, A. (1961). “Myth and reality of social classes”, en Inkeles, A; Geiger, K. Soviet Society. A book of readings. Londres: Constable and company.

Mckee, R. (2009). El guión. Madrid: Alba Editorial.

Rozental, M; Yudin, P. (1955). Kratkij filosofskij slovar. Moscú: Gosudarstvennoe izdatelstvo politichekoij literatury.

Shkaratan, O.I. (1970). Problemy sotsialnoj struktury rabochego klassa SSSR. Moscú: Mysl´.

VV.AA. (1954). Politicheskaya Ek onomia. Moscú: Gosudarstvennoe izdatelstvo politichekoij literatury.

Voslensky, M. (1981). La nomenklatura. Los privilegiados en la URSS. Barcelona: Argos Vergara. Original publicado en 1980.

Zaslavskaya. T. (1988). “O strategii sotsialnogo upravlenia perestrojkoj”, en Afanasev, U. N. Perestrojka: glasnost´, demokratia, sotsializm. Moscú. Progress.

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Published

06-03-2012

How to Cite

Valdera Gil, J. M. (2012). Social Inequality Under Soviet Ideology: Analysis of the Discourse System in the Film "Moscú Does Not Believe in Tears". SOCIAL REVIEW. International Social Sciences Review Revista Internacional De Ciencias Sociales, 1(1). https://doi.org/10.37467/gka-revsocial.v1.1204

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 1 (2012)

Section

Research articles

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