Discursive Practices in the Formation of New Man through Soviet Photography Revisited: A Case Study of the Khalmg Ünn Newspaper, 1957–1964

Abstract

Introduction. The struggle for historical truth systematically conducted by the Government makes it essential enough to address the topic of the Great Patriotic War for further insights into actual discursive practices across Soviet regions. Goals. The work aims at identifying certain patterns of discursive practices once instrumental in the shaping of new man through means of Soviet photography and, specifically, the images published by the Khalmg Ünn (Kalm. ‘Kalmyk truth’) newspaper, a key periodical of the Kalmyk ASSR, between 1957 and 1964. Materials and methods. The continuous sampling method has been instrumental in examining over 10.000 photographs published in 1957 to 1964, the analysis having included both local images and ones delivered by the ‘Center’ (TASS) for further publication in the republican media. The research methods employed are the photograph analysis method (at various levels), quantitative methods, and that of extrapolation. Conclusions. The analysis of 1957–1964 Khalmg Ünn photographs as visual evidence of the past reveals that the then ideological techniques did not involve the theme of the Great Patriotic War to the full: despite the latter served a key element in the shaping of common Soviet identity, it was thenceforth closely associated with the drama of Kalmyk Deportation to Siberia. The newspaper’s visual imagery depicts a republic under reconstruction which was allegedly determined by the specific situation to have resulted from that the Deportation had been undertaken and explained by false accusations of treason and collaborationism — during war years. So, the Center was articulating the idea of restoration and revival of the Republic to be perceived by the Kalmyks as a revival of the ethnos, withdrawal of any charges, complete rehabilitation — and this is manifested in all photographs (construction sites, new buildings and facilities), this key discursive practice employed was to meet the sentiments of Kalmyks to have just relieved and arrived in ancestral lands. The combination of true emotions and ideological patterns created a platform for the formation of new Soviet man in the Kalmyk ASSR.

Keywords

• newspaper
• photography
• visual source
• discursive practice
• great patriotic war
• kalmyk deportation