Motherland: A Feminist History of Modern Russia

Julia Ioffe’s new book, *Motherland: A Feminist History of Modern Russia from Revolution to Tyranny*, offers an insightful, often meandering exploration of the last century of Russian history. It feels like you’re learning, perhaps even a bit overwhelmed, as though the voices of matriarchs from the past are quietly guiding you through the complexities.

Ioffe, who immigrated to the U.S. with her family in 1990 at just seven years old, found a vastly different Russia upon her return in 2009. While her sister belongs to the fourth generation of female doctors in their family, Ioffe encounters other women from similar backgrounds who seem preoccupied with wealthy men, often overlooking other qualities. Even an educated ex-wife is primarily known for her connection to her former husband, as he seems at odds, begrudgingly admiring the talents of another. “Everyone is laughing at these women,” she confides to Ioffe, “But they’re, like, brilliant. Truly brilliant.”

Reflecting on a Soviet study from 1990, it noted that a significant percentage of schoolgirls aspired to be prostitutes, and, nearly two decades later, many seemed to aim only to be housewives. It’s striking.

In *Motherland*, Ioffe examines the shattered promises of Bolshevism. Following their seize of power in 1917, women, who made up a considerable portion of the workforce, embarked on a radical initiative aimed at eliminating gender distinctions and dismantling traditional family structures. Their belief? Bourgeois families trap women in relationships based on financial necessity rather than love.

In the following years, Soviet women acquired “freedoms and rights” that their Western counterparts would still be fighting for decades to establish. This included the right to vote, equality in marriage, no-fault divorce, child support, paid maternity leave, and by 1920, the right to free state abortion services. Ioffe calls this the “greatest feminist experiment on earth,” though, as history shows, that narrative shifts too.

Ioffe skillfully intertwines her family’s experiences with broader historical narratives, portraying various influential women along the way. She includes stories of Nadezhda Krupskaya, Lenin’s wife, Inessa Armando, his mistress, and Alexandra Kollontai, who transcended her privileged origins to become a prominent Marxist revolutionary.

Beyond the lives of prominent figures, the book also highlights female fighter pilots and snipers from World War II, mothers fighting for their sons’ return from conflicts, and women who, despite losing limbs, found ways to reclaim their voices after the decriminalization of domestic violence in Russia. This tapestry of stories creates a resonant narrative.

Born into a Jewish family that narrowly escaped pogroms, Ioffe traces her lineage back to the Pale of Settlement—a region where Jews faced severe violence. The Bolsheviks’ dissolution of such oppressive policies contributed to Jewish participation in their ranks and the lifting of university quotas. Yet, violence against Jews continued during the civil war.

As time passed, many Jews migrated to urban areas, experiencing gradual improvements in their lives, only for Stalin to reverse progress, like with the 1936 ban on abortion. Ioffe recalls terrifying tales from her grandmother, particularly a cautionary story about a mansion belonging to Lavrenty Beria, head of Stalin’s secret police, who was notorious for his predatory behavior.

Under Stalin’s regime, purges, show trials, and a rampant climate of fear continued to stifle any semblance of freedom. The NKVD’s midnight roundups took men and women alike, with many women imprisoned for merely being connected to “traitors.” Some gave birth in camps, only for their children to be sent to inhumane orphanages.

World War II marked a crucial turning point for gender equality, as numerous Soviet women took up combat roles during a time when American women were largely excluded. Some served as part of specialized battalions and others, like Lyudmila Pavlichenko, achieved remarkable feats and found themselves celebrated abroad.

Yet, despite significant contributions during the war, the return to peacetime was harsh. The loss of millions of soldiers left surviving women in dire circumstances, trying to rebuild lives plagued by poverty and loss.

Post-war, the climate for Jews shifted again, with Stalin branding them as “rootless cosmopolitans” and stripping them of influential positions. Following a conspiracy that targeted Jewish doctors, fears among patients led to drastic consequences for many, like Ioffe’s great-grandmother Riva.

As the era progressed, Khrushchev’s policies further complicated matters, particularly for single mothers. Abortion rights saw a tumultuous history, swinging back and forth under changing regimes.

Ioffe’s descriptions of her mother’s struggles are sometimes difficult to digest, but her clear, unflinching prose ensures these narratives are heard. The stark statistics around abortion in the Soviet Union reveal a deeper, more troubling reality for women, with many undergoing multiple procedures over their lifetimes.

Ioffe recounts her mother’s harrowing pregnancy experience filled with measures taken in desperation. Life in post-Soviet Russia proved challenging. Upon visiting Moscow a couple of years after Ioffe and her family left, I found a nation caught in chaos; economic upheaval saw people losing everything, and some women turned to prostitution.

In this turbulent period, foreign nations flooded Russia with money and support, yet many efforts were marred by corruption. While the world celebrated perceived progress, undercurrents of struggle continued to shape Russian society.

My own family’s experiences echo Ioffe’s, reflecting the tumult faced across generations. The tales of pogroms, survival, and migration are woven deeply into the fabric of our family histories. Witnessing the fall of communism had profound effects, including a troubling rise in alcoholism among some men.

Ioffe shares her father’s warning about Russia’s future back when she studied its history—a sentiment she now finds herself agreeing with. The patterns of Russian governance have remained eerily consistent, with hope for true change seeming distant unless the dynamics shift significantly.