The idea that morally, mentally, and physically superior ‘new
men’ might replace the currently existing mankind has
periodically seized the imagination of intellectuals, leaders, and
reformers throughout history. This volume offers a
multidisciplinary investigation into how the ‘new man’ was made
in Russia and the early Soviet Union in the first third of the 20th
century. The traditional narrative of the Soviet ‘new man’ as a
creature forged by propaganda is challenged by the strikingly new
and varied case studies presented here. The book focuses on the
interplay between the rapidly developing experimental life
sciences, such as biology, medicine, and psychology, and countless
cultural products, ranging from film and fiction, dolls and museum
exhibits to pedagogical projects, sculptures, and exemplary
agricultural fairs. With contributions from scholars based in the
United States, Canada, the UK, Germany and Russia, the picture that
emerges is emphatically more complex, contradictory, and suggestive
of strong parallels with other ‘new man’ visions in Europe and
elsewhere. In contrast to previous interpretations that focused
largely on the apparent disconnect between utopian ‘new man’
rhetoric and the harsh realities of everyday life in the Soviet
Union, this volume brings to light the surprising historical
trajectories of ‘new man’ visions, their often obscure origins,
acclaimed and forgotten champions, unexpected and complicated
results, and mutual interrelations. In short, the volume is a
timely examination of a recurring theme in modern history, when
dramatic advancements in science and technology conjoin with
anxieties about the future to fuel dreams of a new and improved
mankind.
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