Transformation of public consciousness of Soviet youth in the conditions of mass political repressions of 1937–1938

The work is devoted to the study of the peculiarities of youth perception of the repressive policy of the Soviet regime. On the basis of the studied archival documents and periodicals materials of the Tambov Region, the main ways of adaptation of youth to the toughened system of political control are shown. We reveal the main motives for which young men and women took part in making denunciations. It is concluded that the majority of youth sincerely believed the statements of propaganda structures about the existence of countless “enemies of the people” and the need to expose them. However, there were those for whom terror became an opportunity to advance their careers or to satisfy their thirst for revenge. It is proved that in the youth environment a submissive type of political culture was developed, and deindividualization of consciousness was carried out. Fear for one’s own life spawned doublethink among the majority of those who disagreed with the party line. Nevertheless, the presence of critical and protest sentiments testifies to the existence of a personal perception of the phenomena of Soviet reality by young people, which significantly differed from official assessments.