ABSTRACT
Ideology was from the beginning the cornerstone of Soviet life. 1 It penetrated all domains, shaped all structures, guided all laws, touched everything down to the private lives of the most nonpolitical citizens. But at the same time, the ideological superstructure drifted away from the reality of life (and vice versa), reaching a stage where the two no longer corresponded. Simultaneously, the original ideological formulas evolved in their own way. Thus ideological signifiers became disconnected not only from reality but also from the images they tried to convey. Now they are crumbling in the face of national regeneration within the USSR and especially in Eastern Europe.
