ABSTRACT
This chapter reconstructs the image of the Soviet city, formed in the course of analysis of the intense urbanization that was experienced by Russian society in the 20th century. It examines how the conception of the city changed with the evolution of social thought and understanding of the transformations caused by this unprecedented urban growth. The chapter analyzes works by Soviet architects and social scientists, reconstructing the idea of urbanization, its genesis and nature. The official definition of the city in the Soviet Union, one that persists, was based on population and main occupations, but some researchers found this definition inadequate. However, on the micro-level, stepping aside from the dichotomous model and recognizing the multiplicity of the agents that create urban fabric, the genuine city could be found. Contradictory understandings of the urbanization of Soviet society were rooted in the ambiguous concept of the city in the reception of Marxism by Soviet theorists.
