Undergraduate Fellowship in Digital Humanities (UFDH)

This project examines how the Soviet Union shaped cultural identity through children’s animated media, using digital humanities tools to explore some of the values and messages woven in two well known Soviet cartoons. Although these films might appear simple on the surface, they played a crucial role in introducing children to ideas about community, responsibility, and social belonging. By translating and subtitling Cheburashka (1971) and There Once Lived a Dog (1982) myself directly from the original Russian, I was able to engage closely with the tone, humor, and cultural nuance that are often lost in some standard translations. The prototype for this project is an interactive ArcGIS StoryMap that brings together translated clips from each film, thematic analysis, historical context, and photographs. Ultimately, this project shows that Soviet children’s cartoons offer valuable insight into how the state imagined cultural identity and expected it to be passed on. As remnants of the Red Scare linger in the American general public, this project is an attempt to gain a better understanding of the lives Soviet citizens led and the values they believed in. The prototype represents an early version of a larger project that could include more films, additional republics, and broader comparative work on children’s media and ideology.