Work

‘Good fortune in the camps never lasted’: Gendered experience of carceral labour in the Soviet Union, 1930–1953

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Gendered order in the Soviet camp system shaped women inmates’ experiences of labour and factored in their survival. This article zooms in on the published memoirs of four women political prisoners who survived the Gulag and explores how they experienced and narrated carceral labour. It focuses on three types of labour taking place in the carceral setting – forced labour, care work and clandestine crafts – and investigates the gendered dynamics that surrounded each of these interrelated types of labour. Historically‐situated forms of women inmates’ constrained labour‐related agency, as the memoirs show, were diverse and not always limited to outright resistance or compliance.

Source: Gender & History

DOI: 10.1111/1468-0424.12818

Author: Zhanna Popova

Institution: Central European University

Language: English

Topic: Soviet and Russian History

Subfield: Political Science and International Relations

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Gender equality, Peace, justice, and strong institutions, Decent work and economic growth, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,190