Book · 1968 · Soviet union, fiction
The First Circle
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I'm thinking of of Sol n who in the goog and in the first Circle which we we talked about on this program.
The best things said about it
Prisoners were also used for atomic energy research 50% of which was done in special nkvd centers called shirashi such as those described in solon's the first Circle where highly trained Specialists worked in captivity.
Where and when it comes up
Most episodes, by podcast
Why people recommend it
Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's powerful novel depicts the grim realities and moral dilemmas faced by scientists, intellectuals, and political prisoners confined to a special Soviet research prison. On EconTalk, Russ Roberts brought up the book while talking about humor in grim literature, and he also mentioned it during Conversations with Tyler when examining polyphonic Russian novels previously covered on the program, noting that it differs from traditional nineteenth-century epics like War and Peace. Robert Evans referenced the work on Behind the Bastards to describe the historical realities of Soviet atomic energy research, explaining that fifty percent of this work was conducted in special NKVD centers known as sharashkas, where highly trained specialists were forced to work in captivity just as Solzhenitsyn described. These podcast discussions illustrate how the novel serves not only as a vital historical document regarding Soviet repression and state-sponsored technological development, but also as a complex work of literature that engages deeply with the human cost of totalitarianism.
Every mention
Russ Roberts I'm thinking of of Sol n who in the goog and in the first Circle which we we talked about on this program 2
“I'm thinking of of Sol n who in the goog and in the first Circle which we we talked about on this program”
“it's not a traditional novel akin to war in peace or akin to other Russian novels such as the brothers katof were in the first Circle which we talked about here on the program uh previously”
Robert Evans prisoners were also used for atomic energy research 50% of which was done in special nkvd centers called sh… 1
“prisoners were also used for atomic energy research 50% of which was done in special nkvd centers called shirashi such as those described in solon's the first Circle where highly trained Specialists worked in captivity”