Concepts of reproductive behaviour and motherhood in Soviet cinema of the 1920–1930s

The article examines representations of motherhood and reproductive behaviour in Soviet cinema from Revolution 1917 to the mid-1930s (films “Children are the Flowers of Life”, “The Road to Happiness”, “Katka's Reinette Apples”, “Bed and Sofa”, etc.) through the study of the reproductive choice mechanism, demonstration of pregnancy, childbirth and child care. Conclusions are drawn about the presence of several main conceptual frameworks, such as happy Soviet motherhood as opposed to pre-revolutionary motherhood; the unreliability of the parental function of the biological father, but the support of the collective and the acquisition of a new partner, which means the creation of a two-parents family; transition from the demonstration of medical instruments and the process of childbirth to the withdrawal of this segment; etc.