Building Socialism: The Idea of Progress and the Construction of Industrial Cities in the Soviet Union, 1927-1938

Abstract

This study examines how Soviet and Western institutions, governmental agencies, presses, and publishing companies often created an image that the Soviet Union was progressing towards an industrialized nation through the inauguration of the First Five-Year Plan, 1928-1932. This study also examines how individuals themselves viewed this industrialization. The study revolves around two industrial cities constructed during the First Five-Year Plan and its immediate aftermath in the Soviet Union: Magnitogorsk and Nizhnii Novgorod. Government city planners constructed whole new industrial and housing facilities from the ground up in locations practically barren just a few years earlier. To the Soviet government these cities were symbols of socialism's ability to build planned socialist cities, and by extension their ability to build a new society. The history, importance, and portrayal of these two cities are a microcosm of the Soviet industrialization process in general. Through this study, it becomes apparent the constructed image is one of progress, either progress achieved or in some cases progress unachieved. Soviet as well as Western presses and publications often created an image that the Soviet Union, through its industrialization, was building a new modern society. Furthermore, many of those involved in the construction of these cities, both Westerners and Soviet citizens, seemingly agreed with the images being constructed by the press.