In this episode, Kristen Ghodsee discusses the title and content of Alexandra Kollontai's 1926 book, The Autobiography of a Sexually Emancipated Communist Woman, with her 17-year-old daughter. Particularly salient is the question of trolls and haters in politics, and whether having a lot of critics actually amplifies one's message.
This memoir was written as Kollontai began her diplomatic career when she was 54-years-old and a veteran of the revolution. Lenin was already dead, Stalin was seizing power, and Kollontai was reflecting on the achievements of her life thus far. The initial publication of the memoir was heavily censored, particularly the passages where Kollontai speaks about her love life and her history of failed relationships with men. At the time, Kollontai was only the third woman to serve as ambassadress in the history of diplomatic service, but she was the first to do so as a divorcée who was widely known to have had multiple partners over the course of her life. The version read for this podcast includes the censored passages, and Ghodsee reflects on the historical context within which the memoir was written.
Note: Pavel Dybenko, Kollontai's second husband was born in 1889, and was therefore 17 years her junior.
Alexander Shliapnikov, Kollontai's lover in Paris and life-long friend, was born in 1885, and was therefore 13 years her junior.
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