Cultural Diplomacy of the UkrSSR (Late 1940s – 1982): Features of the Formation of Tools

Abstract

The purpose of the article is to study the peculiarities of the representation of Ukrainian culture in the world since the late 1940s before the beginning of the “Gorbachev’s era” and the process of forming the instruments of cultural diplomacy.

The methodology of the study is based on the principles of scientific, historicism, systematic; general science and specific methods: source criticism, imagology, etc.

The scientific novelty of the results of the study is to reproduce on the basis of archival sources the process of forming the tools of cultural diplomacy, which during the independence of Ukraine, having lost its ideological component, began to be used to form a positive image of Ukraine in the world.

Conclusions. The peculiarity of the representation of Ukrainian culture abroad during the study period is the subordination of this activity to all-Union tasks and control by party bodies and the special service. Forms of cultural representation of the UkrSSR abroad in content were focused on maintaining in the representation of societies of foreign states the leadership position of the USSR, promoting the advantages of the Soviet way of life, preserving the ideology of the “Soviet people – the liberator of Europe from fascism”. For this purpose, theatrical exchanges, translation activities, participation of Ukrainian young performers in the World Festivals of Youth and Students, touring activities of Ukrainian collectives, twinning movement were used. Despite the ideological barriers and the lack of the possibility of independent representation of Ukrainians (only within the UkrSSR), even under the conditions of that time, such measures contributed to the formation of the opinion of the foreign intelligentsia about the separation of Ukraine from the Soviet Union. Beyond the ideological content, the proven forms of representation of culture and art abroad had a universal character and found their development as effective tools of cultural diplomacy after the restoration of Ukraine’s state independence.