Gulag: A History

Chapter 8 explores the impact of the Soviet prison system on the psyche of its inmates, emphasizing how arrests, interrogations, and the prison environment itself prepared prisoners for their subsequent life in the Gulag. Applebaum discusses the nuances of the Soviet prison regime, noting its similarities and differences with other penal systems worldwide. While acknowledging that Soviet prisons were harsher than their Western and Czarist predecessors, she also points out that conditions in prisons elsewhere, like China, were comparably severe. However, specific aspects of the daily prison regime in the Soviet Union were uniquely designed to disorient and break down prisoners, reflecting shifts in the priorities of the authorities running the camps and prisons over time.

From the issuance of Genrikh Yagoda’s 1935 order, which made prisoners’ basic living conditions and privileges contingent on their cooperation (usually meaning confession), to Lavrenty Beria’s 1942 directives aimed at maintaining prisoners’ health for labor efficiency, the chapter traces the evolution of prison policies. It details the varying conditions across different prisons, the specific regulations concerning prisoners’ daily routines, and the strategic enforcement of rules to prevent solidarity among prisoners while ensuring their complete submission and readiness for the Gulag system.

For example, Genrikh Yagoda’s 1935 order made prisoners’ basic needs and privileges contingent on their cooperation, essentially using basic human necessities as leverage for compliance, thereby creating divisions based on willingness to confess. Further, the stringent enforcement of silence and communication bans isolated inmates, breaking down potential solidarity and making dependence on authorities inevitable. Despite these oppressive measures, prisoners’ resilience shone through in initiatives like the “Committees for the Poor” in Butyrka, where inmates redistributed resources to maintain a sense of community. However, the authorities’ countermeasures against these committees underscored the relentless efforts to prevent any form of unity, further illustrating the complicated interplay between prisoner resistance and systemic suppression within the Soviet penal system.

Through personal accounts and historical documentation, Applebaum highlights the strategies prisoners employed to maintain their dignity, sanity, and a sense of community despite the oppressive environment. These included the creation of a secret Morse code for communication between cells and the role of the starosta (cell elder) in managing daily life within the cell.

Chapter 9 explores the journey of prisoners from their initial capture to their arrival and selection at the labor camps, a process that was both physically and psychologically grueling. It begins with a contrast to historical accounts of exiles, illustrating the brutal reality of 20th-century Soviet prisoners’ transport.

The chapter describes the dehumanizing process of transport in “Black Ravens” (trucks disguised under innocuous labels like “bread” or “vegetables”), the overcrowded and inhumane conditions aboard trains, and the final boat journey that felt like a passage to the abyss for many prisoners. Applebaum highlights the indifferent or malicious attitudes of convoy guards, the psychological impact of being stripped of personal identity and dignity, and the desperate struggle for survival under conditions of extreme deprivation, including lack of food and water and exposure to the elements.

The selection process upon arrival at the camps is depicted as a final, cruel form of sorting, determining the fate of each prisoner based on arbitrary or corrupt criteria. This process not only assigned prisoners to their labor tasks but also stripped them of the last remnants of their personal identity.

Chapter 10 examines the Gulag system in the period between 1929 and 1953. The chapter reveals the sheer complexity and variability of the camp system, which comprised 476 camp complexes and countless sub-camps or lagpunkts, each differing in size, longevity, and the conditions faced by the prisoners, or zeks. The camps ranged from industrial complexes in the far north to agricultural farms in southern Russia, with conditions fluctuating drastically due to factors such as leadership, location, and the political climate of the era.

Applebaum describes the camps as isolated worlds, each with its distinct character influenced by geographical location, the whims of camp commanders, and the ever-changing policies from Moscow. Despite efforts to standardize camp life, particularly under Lavrentiy Beria’s tenure from 1939 until Stalin’s death in 1953, disparities were rampant. The chapter probes the bureaucratic attempts to regulate every aspect of camp life, from work assignments to food rations, yet acknowledges the systemic failure to treat prisoners as human beings, reducing them to mere components of the Soviet economic machine.

This chapter reveals the multifaceted and paradoxical nature of labor within the Soviet camp system. The camps were not just sites of punishment: They were integral to the Soviet economy, engaging in a wide array of activities that mirrored the Soviet Union’s broader economic endeavors. From mining and construction to the designing of airplanes and running nuclear power plants, prisoners contributed significantly to the nation’s output. Applebaum dispels the stereotype of prisoners solely engaged in brute labor under harsh conditions, highlighting the diversity of work, which could vary dramatically from camp to camp. This complexity illustrates how the Gulag was deeply embedded in the Soviet economic fabric and was not just an isolated system of repression.

Applebaum also discusses the organization of labor within the camps, distinguishing between general work and specialized tasks. The majority of prisoners were engaged in physically demanding, unskilled labor known as “general work.” A select few, often through luck or connections, secured less strenuous positions or even roles that could impact their survival. The camp hierarchy, including the pivotal role of brigadiers who could dramatically affect a prisoner’s fate, underscores the social stratification within the Gulag.

The chapter further explores the Soviet regime’s efforts to integrate ideological indoctrination and economic exploitation, highlighting the absurdity and frequent brutality of attempting to mold the Gulag’s forced labor into a tool for communist propaganda. Examples of this include prisoners being coerced into productivity through cultural and educational programs, despite the harsh realities of their labor. The absurdity of the situation is further highlighted by initiatives like the Cultural-Educational Department, which, amidst the dire conditions of camp life, was responsible for fostering a sense of Soviet patriotism and productivity through activities such as political lectures, theatrical performances, and even contests designed to increase output. This juxtaposition of forced labor with attempts at ideological re-education underscores the complex dual purpose of the Gulag as both a tool of repression and an economic asset, reflecting a deeply flawed attempt to reconcile the inhumane conditions of forced labor with the ideological aims of the Soviet state.

Chapter 12 offers an in-depth exploration of the Soviet camp system’s methodologies for maintaining order and incentivizing work through a system of penalties and rewards.

The chapter begins by describing the existence and structure of punishment isolators, known as SHIZO, underscoring their significance within the camp hierarchy as both a tool of control and a symbol of the camps’ rigorous discipline. The durability of these structures—often the only remnants of the camps today—highlights the permanence of the punishment they administered and the broader implications for understanding the Gulag’s impact on the human spirit. Applebaum outlines the regulations governing these cells and the central punishment blocks, painting a picture of isolation, deprivation, and psychological warfare waged against prisoners deemed non-compliant or “particularly malicious.”

Applebaum examines the paradox of maintaining costly punishment facilities that seemingly contradicted the Gulag’s economic motivations. This segment reveals the dual role of the camps as instruments of economic output and ideological enforcement, where the threat of punishment cells served to deter resistance and enforce compliance. The narrative features personal stories of prisoners who, through refusal to work or religious conviction, found themselves enduring these harsh conditions. These accounts underscore the varied populace of the Gulag, from professional thieves to devout religious figures, highlighting the complex interplay between individual acts of defiance and the system’s relentless push for conformity and productivity.

The discussion about rewards—particularly through controlled contact with the outside world via letters, packages, and visits—contrasts sharply with the punitive measures detailed earlier. Applebaum describes the intricate regulations and the lifeline these contacts represented for prisoners, as they simultaneously offered a glimpse of hope and were a tool for manipulation by camp authorities.