Contesting developed socialism: Eco-nationalism and the Latvian cultural elite in the late Soviet era

• In Event: Mobilizing National Identity During the Soviet Era: Cultural Actors and the Field of Power in the Baltic Republics

Abstract

In the late Soviet period, ecological problems in the Baltic states became an object of discussion that helped to mobilize both moral awareness and national identity. The intelligentsia played an important role in advancing the eco-national discourse. This paper seeks to examine how the cultural elite of Soviet Latvia managed to problematize national identity via ecological issues. In particular, the paper explores discussion "A man and the Nature" organized by the influential cultural newspaper "Literatūra un Māksla" in 1982. The discussion that continued for several months caused a lot of controversy and forced officials of the party apparatus and other Soviet institutions to get involved. The paper argues that the social position of the participants in the discussion helped to transform the conversation about ecology into a conversation about national identity. Simultaneously, LuM's relations with the Central Committee of the Latvian Communist Party and the Council of Ministers that conditioned this discussion is also addressed. By masterfully maneuvering within the field of power, LuM enabled an interest group that crossed different professional fields and brought the intelligentsia and progressive-minded Soviet officials together.

Author

• Mārtiņš Kaprāns, University of Latvia