Canada in the Soviet Mirror

Ideology and Perception in Soviet Foreign Affairs, 1917-1991

By J.L. Black
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press
Ebook (PDF) : 9780773580930, 481 pages, April 1998

Description

This is an original, thoroughly researched account of the image of Canada in Soviet writings - political, jounalistic and academic - over the entire course of Soviet history. A study of the role of ideology in Soviet foreign affairs, the book traces the influence of an adjusting Marxist-Leninist "lens" on policy formulated by the Kremlin and also, explicitly, on a public discourse rigidly controlled by government. This public image has been collated with private opinion documented in recently opened Russian archives. Canada clearly served a larger purpose in Soviet foreign policy than was previously assumed. Uniquely Canadian issues and participants helped shape Soviet policy, sometimes in very strange ways. Both story and reference text, Canada in the Soviet Mirror will interest readers in Soviet and Canadian studies, journalism, and popular culture.

Reviews

"A ground-breaking study, Canada in the Soviet Mirror offers a unique account of the ways politics in the USSR shaped perceptions and discourse about a foreign country - Canada." Peter H. Solomon, Jr., University of Toronto.