Introduction

Abstract

As one interested in the First Russian Revolution, I looked forward to the flurry of new Soviet articles I expected to appear in commemoration of the seventy-fifth anniversary of that event. I felt certain that thought-provoking works replete with new information and insights would fill the pages of Istoriia SSSR, Voprosy istorii, and other Soviet journals. Unfortunately, reality has brought disillusionment. In too many cases the articles that have appeared (1) contain little new information, not to mention insightful reinterpretations of the Revolution of 1905-07. They produce a sense of déjà vu, as though one were rereading articles read several years before. For some reason, their authors have refrained from forging ahead into unmapped areas, and the result is disappointing.