A series of four 60 minute lectures:

This exciting and timely set of 4 lectures examines the decline and eventual collapse of the Soviet Union. From the death of Stalin to the beginnings of Vladimir Putin's reign, we will explore figures such as Nakita Khrushchev and Leonid Brezhnev with special focus on the singular premiership of Michael Gorbachev. We will also study the lives and aspirations of average Russians as they tried to balance revolutionary principles with their average needs and wants during the Cold War -- all within an economic and political system that was failing.