Suchergebnisse

The article elucidates the evolution of the orphanage network in Moldovan SSAR and Moldovan SSR in relation to the socio-economic realities and the social policy of the Soviet state. By analysing the statistical data, we show that the expansion of the orphanage network in the MSSAR (1924-1940) and in the MSSR in 1944-1961 is due to the social policy of reducing the number of homeless and orphaned children suffering from hunger. We conclude that the number of orphanages increased during the famine, and decreased only after mitigating its consequences in the early 1950s. The Soviet state, on the one hand, provoked the humanitarian crisis in the MSSR, and on the other hand, proved to be "humane" by organizing an extensive network of orphanages intended to save children. The difficult situation of children in the post-war years, the starvation, vagrancy, the increased number of orphaned children, etc. was the consequence of the totalitarian politics and of the irresponsibility of local authorities.

The Soviet power sought to liquidate the old traditions and to invent revolutionary ones, as well as to transform some Christian traditions into communist ones in order to constitute a new culture – of Soviet type. Following the analysis of winter traditions in the MSSR that involved children, we conclude that the transformation of the tradition took place only in the official calendar, due to which it could not decisively influence the formation of the ethnocultural identity of the young generation. Despite all the efforts of the political factor, the traditional calendar could not be changed. Regardless of the hostile political and ideological environment, the attachment of the population to traditions, customs, and the Christian Orthodox faith has not been liquidated. The sustainability of the traditions in the consciousness of the society prevented their displacement; they were partially filled with some elements with ideological content. The influence of the environment – partly of the atheist propaganda on behalf of the school and children's organizations and the religious propaganda on behalf of the family – formed a duplicitous attitude towards religion, forcing children to secretly follow religious cultures. The children found themselves caught between two contradictory worlds: the official Soviet world and the traditional environment from which they originated (family, village, relatives). Authentic values ultimately prevailed spiritually.

In this article, we elucidate the problem of providing food products to orphanages in the Moldavian SSR in the years 1944–1947. The research found that the expansion of the orphanage network in the MSSR in the post-war years was due to the social policy of reducing the number of wandering and orphaned children suffering from hunger. The number of orphanages increased during the famine, and gradually decreased after its overcoming. The controls carried out by the authorities in the field of education and healthcare found serious gaps in the process of providing food to orphanages, irregularities in the management of products and even abuse of staff towards children. These realities aggravated the situation of children in orphanages, who were affected by the difficult family situation, famine and precarious conditions in institutions. Survivors' testimonies show that most of the orphans who were taken to orphanages were rescued from starvation, and in some cases, when taken by relatives for maintenance, they died. The archive documents, but also the testimonies of the survivors show that the difficult situation of the children in the post-war years, the starvation, the vagrancy, the increase in the number of orphaned children, etc. were a consequence of the totalitarian politics and the irresponsibility of the local authorities.

The article elucidates the establishment of a new direction of ethnological research in the Republic of Moldova – "Ethnology of Sovietness", which refers to the research of "Soviet culture" from an ethnological perspective. The very term Sovietness means the directed transformations of the Soviet tradition and culture created by the totalitarian communist system in the USSR. The article also reflects the fact that some researchers approach Soviet culture as a "specific traditional culture" and opt for safeguarding it, as is the case with all traditional cultures, while other researchers appreciate Soviet culture as repressive and exclusive, inauthentic, created on false utopian ideological principles, meant to build a new social and cultural community. In the author's opinion, in a democratic society, the culture created in totalitarianism can no longer survive without being ideologically nurtured, and without being imposed by dictation. However, elements of Soviet culture are still perpetuated to this day. And, the mission of "Ethnology of Sovietness" is not to preserve a totalitarian culture, but to elucidate the guided transformations that have taken place, the mechanisms of influence on social and ethno-cultural identity, the invented Soviet tradition, everyday life, etc., in order to understand the authentic cultural values of today, which can develop the individual and communities based on the cultural matrix