PUB - Publikationen an der Universität Bielefeld

World revolution, international solidarity, the Communist International, proletarian internationalism - these notions and topics were a crucial part of Soviet public discourse and Bolshevik self-conception in the first years after the October revolution. Despite the seemingly obscurity and abstractness, the notion of the internationality of class struggle ment a lot for the Communist movement, be it leaders or rank and file, the idea of world revolution being a promise of salvation. How did the Communist party propagate revolutionary internationalism amongst its ranks and beyond? What function did world-revolutionary motifs play in Soviet public discourse and Bolshevik assurance of power? And, more importantly, what practices were available for Soviet citizens of various social strata to participate in what was perceived as a world-wide communist struggle? These questions are to be tackled by the PhD project, adhering to a historical perspective that puts emphasis on human agency.