The Topos of Utopianism in Posters Dedicated to the Countryside in Central and Eastern Europe in the 1950s.

Abstract

The concept of utopia is explored by scholars from various disciplines, including literary theorists, political scientists, cultural analysts, educators, historians, and art historians who often refer to it as the Arcadian myth. In Central and Eastern Europe, posters depicting rural life and published during the 1950s were created exclusively in the style of Socialist Realism. This artistic method was employed to portray an idealized, fictional image of the countryside, whose characteristics bear striking resemblance to those of a utopia. The depicted vision consists of key elements typical of utopian literature, including: the absence of specific temporal and spatial coordinates, the dissolution of state structures, the prevalence of collectivism, professed equality (albeit illusory in practice), the eradication of social classes and conflicts, the paramount importance of labor, the omnipresent factor of happiness, the idealization of human figures and their behavior, as well as an Arcadian landscape. The utopian essence of these 1950s posters was further reinforced by the intrinsic attributes of the posters themselves which were reduced to serving merely as advertising tools, by the strategic deployment of ideology, and by the distinctive features inherent to Socialist Realism.