This was an extremely exciting decade for the people of the Soviet Union. Virtually all segments of society were aware of and greatly influenced by the variety of amazing happenings that took place in only ten years.



In 1985, Chernenko died and Mikhail Gorbachev becomes General Secretary of the Communist Party. Reform was needed and in an effort to bring about social, political and economic reform, Gorbachev introduced glasnost (which essentially means openness and is associated strongly with freedom of speech - some date glasnost as a period between 1990 and 2000 but Gorbachev was using the term in 1985) and perestroika (basically economic restructuring). These two concepts profoundly affected the social, political, economic and cultural climate of the time. Glasnost led to an opening up of all aspects of society from politics, government, social attitudes to literature and the arts.



This new freedom still resulted in struggle. Gorbachev was often caught between a rock and a hard place. One good example was the Chernobyl nuclear power plant disaster which occurred in 1986. He would have preferred to have kept the accident a secret both from the larger Soviet population and from the rest of the world. Unfortunately, the Soviet news media was newly invigorated by glasnost and there was nothing he could do to stop the news from getting out.



A similar struggle has occurred in literature as well. Many authors who were banned from publication during the Soviet period were recovered and many émigrés writers were published in their homeland for the first time. As a result some believe that a whole generation of Russian writers were squeezed out of publication. That combined with increasing infiltration of literature from the West, left many Russian readers preferring the work of Agatha Christie over the work of native authors. Greater importation of television and film from abroad resulted in some preferring not to read at all.



But some new writers did emerge. Women authors, in particular, who had also been unable to publish were now getting their work printed. Ludmilla Petrushevskaia, who wrote plays, short novels and poetry is an example of an author who is known not just for being a woman but also for confronting themes like alcoholism, domestic abuse, prostitution that prior to glasnost were thought to be unknown in Soviet society.



The arts were also experiencing greater freedom. The Eifman ballet is an example of some of the changes glasnost and perestroika accelerated. Unlike traditional ballet, Eifman's ballet was unique. First, because it was unusual for a ballet to have just one choreographer but even more important it was a unique blend of what was Russian with what had slipped in from the west. It was, according to some, a kind of musical theatre. It was also a new company something that would not have been supported by the state prior to restructuring.



Gorbachev also pursued efforts to improve relations with the United States and managed to agree to important arms limitations treaties for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1990.



However by 1991, the economic restructuring of perestroika had failed to solve all problems and in August of 1991 an anti-Gorbachev coup took place. It was unsuccessful but by the end of the year (December 31) Gorbachev resigned. The Soviet Union disintegrated and the various republics (14) become independent with Boris Yeltsin becoming president. The problems continued to worsen. While poverty through the early 1990s was about 1.5%, by 1993 39-49% of the population was believed to be living in poverty, population began to decline and death rates climbed. The death rate from alcohol was found to be around 60% by the mid 1990s. Corruption grew as another serious problem throughout the early 1990s.



In the thirteen years since this decade ended, Russia has continued to experience change and struggle. Not having studied contemporary problems in Russia to any extent, I am not sure that I can make many meaningful comments beyond 1995. I do know, however, that while there remains a good deal of freedom of expression in literature and the arts such is not the case in the news media. During Putin's regime there has been quite a bit of government control exercised. All three television stations in Russia are unable to broadcast criticism of Putin. Newspapers seem a little bit freer and Kommersant has actually been critical of Putin at times. A number of reporters have gone missing and a number have been killed under suspicious circumstances. It seems that freedom is always a struggle.