After consolidating his power over the Soviet Union in 1929, Josef Stalin implemented strict and comprehensive censorship. Not only people but also books could be deported to the GULag, where they were housed in so-called “Spetskhrans” (special depots). In total, around 100,000 books were banned in the USSR, and millions of copies were destroyed.

The supreme censorship institution throughout the Soviet Union was known by the abbreviation “Glavlit”, which stands for “Glavnoye upravleniye po delam literatury i izdatelstv” (“Main Administration for Affairs of Literature and Publishing”). Established in 1922, Glavlit played a central role in monitoring books, newspapers, and other media to ensure they adhered to the political and ideological directives of the Communist Party.

Even after Stalin’s death in 1953, fundamental elements such as the communist ideology and the state structure of the Soviet Union remained untouched. However, the cult of personality around Stalin was weakened, which also had an impact on censorship.

In 1960 and 1961, a two-part list of books that were to be removed from libraries and bookstores (“Svodnyi spisok knig, podlezhaschikh isklyucheniyu iz bibliotek i knigotorgovoi seti”) was published. This list was created on the instructions of Glavlit and issued by the Union Book Chamber. The first part comprises 135 pages (approx. 1600 titles), while the second part consists of 459 pages (approx. 8000 titles). The list encompasses various literary genres, including propaganda books and brochures, especially those related to Stalin. It also includes some well-known works by Russian-language authors of the 20th century, such as Boris Pasternak, Olga Bergholz, and Maximilian Voloshin. Censorship extended beyond Russian-language literature and affected works from various regions of the Soviet Union. For example, the list includes numerous collections of Georgian poems (by authors like Alexander Abasheli and Grigol Abashidze). Some school materials and writings on agriculture were also banned.

However, the exact reasons for the exclusion of most works remain unclear. The absence of explanatory comments leaves room for speculation about the criteria that actually influenced the censorship of the books.

As part of a seminar at the University of Kassel, a representative selection of 60 titles was included in the Kasseler Liste.

                                                                                    Die Kasseler Liste, February 2024