The glass of water theory is a doctrine asserting that in a communist society, satisfying sexual desires and love will be as simple and unimportant as drinking a glass of water.[1] The theory is commonly associated with Alexandra Kollontai, although such characterization ignores the complexity of her theoretical work.[2][3] Anatoly Lunacharsky criticized the theory in his article "On Everyday Life: Young People and the 'Glass of Water' Theory".[4] The theory’s place in the Soviet ideological framework was later replaced by The Twelve Sexual Commandments of the Revolutionary Proletariat by Aron Zalkind.[5]
1929 is considered the year of the end of the Bolshevik sexual revolution and the theory of the glass of water as its basis. However, several researchers in the history of the sexual revolution in the USSR argue that the sexual revolution formally ended in 1935 with the enactment of a law criminalizing pornography.[6]
References
edit- ^ Clara Zetkin. "Lenin on the Women's Question". marxists.org. Archived from the original on 30 March 2020. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
- ^ Georgy Manaev, Daniel Chalyan (14 May 2018). "How sexual revolution exploded (and imploded) across 1920s Russia". Russia Beyond. Archived from the original on 30 October 2022. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
- ^ "Alexandra Kollontai and Red Love". Against the Current. 2008-07-14. Archived from the original on 2024-02-25. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
- ^ Луначарский, А.B. (1927-01-01). "О быте. Молодежь и теория «стакана воды»" [On Everyday Life: Young People and the "Glass of Water" Theory]. Луначарский А. В. (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2023-09-14. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
- ^ "Залкинд А. Б. Двенадцать половых заповедей революционного пролетариата". a-z.ru. Archived from the original on 2022-11-30. Retrieved 2024-07-10.
- ^ "Постановление ЦИК СССР N 21, СНК СССР N 2335 от 17.10.1935 "Об ответственности за изготовление, хранение и рекламирование порнографических изданий, изображений и иных предметов и за торговлю ими"". КонсультантПлюс. Archived from the original on 2024-02-14. Retrieved 2024-07-10.