Drawing from a range of sources, this title reveals the rich diversity of youth cultures in Soviet Russia during the 1920s. It explores the relationship between representation and reality, between official ideology and popular culture, and the meaning of these relationships for the making of a Soviet state and society.

From the clash between ultra-communist visions of what Russian young people should be and the flamboyant style of flappers and foxtrotters so prominently imported from the capitalist West, emerges a vivid picture of the construction of Soviet youth. Thoughtful and appealing, Youth, Politics, and Culture in Revolutionary Russia will become essential reading for those interested in youth, popular culture, Soviet history, and Soviet state building.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Youth and Culture
1. The Politics of Generation
2. The Urban Environment
3. Making Youth Communist
4. Excesses of Enthusiasm
5. Gender and Generation
6. Flappers and Foxtrotters
7. Life and Leisure on the Street
8. Discourses of Delinquency
Epilogue
Notes
Bibliography
Index