Fields of Interest:
My first book, Closer to the Masses: Stalinist Culture, Social Revolution, and Soviet Newspapers (2004), examined the origins of high Stalinist culture, including Socialist Realist literature, in the newspaper press of the 1920s. I am now completing a book on the assassination of Leningrad Party chief Sergei Kirov in 1934. This work uses new archival sources on the Kirov murder and analyzes the use of the murder in Soviet political struggles from 1934 through 1991. I am also engaged in research on the experiences of Soviet infantrymen during the first eight months of the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union. My other research and teaching interests include history of propaganda and surveillance worldwide, the Russian Far East and its relations with East Asian societies, and comparative study of modern revolutions.
Graduate Fields:
I offer the following fields for the PhD qualifying examination. For explanations of fields, see the "Graduate Overview" page in the Graduate Handbook.
Teaching Field:
Research Field:
I will be accepting students for admission in Fall 2013.
Courses Offered:
- HIS 102: The West and the World since 1942
- HIS 151: Imperial Russia (RST 171)
- HIS 155: History of Russia to 1692 (RST 155)
- HIS 292/292W: Totalitarianism and Everyday Life
- HIS 301W: Stalinism (RST 246)
- HIS 331W/431: The Soviet Union and the Cold War
Representative Publications:
