Abstract

Purpose. The subject of this article deals with showcasing the level of research in contemporary scientific literature. The goal of the article is a critical analysis of pre-vious studies, separating the as-of-yet untouched aspects of the topic. Using multiple historiography sources as the base for research, the author explains the reasons for a rise in quantity of works related to the issues of propaganda, including the mechan-ics of creating such images, the psychological effects of their formations, and the circumstances of the appearance of such images of "the Other" in regards to both foreign and domestic policy of the Soviet Union. Approach. The research is based on a critical analysis of the sources of historiog-raphy, specifically the PhD thesis ones, as well as various scientific articles from Ukrainian and Russian historians and sociologists. The approach to choosing sources is based on the view of historiography as a field of study in itself, as it en-compasses many works that deal with specific issues, so that a historiography analy-sis study would allow to discern relevant points that were not yet analyzed by previ-ous scientists and could become subjects of future articles. Determining this level of the issues' study helps to show the article's relevance. Findings. The research's results show that every image formed in human con-science is a unique and many-faceted subject that is quite relevant for contemporary science. The stepping stone in the research of said complex phenomenon is inter-vened with events related to the dismantlement of the USSR as a political entity, with independent states emerging on its former territories. According to the author, the changes in the countries' political regimes and social structures brought the long-sought freedom of artistic thought, removed the censorship and Soviet ideological issues, allowing to start the research of different facets of Soviet propaganda. It is also noted that the concept of "the Other" is an integral a part of societal understand-ing of the world. For the Soviet era, the creation of such an image is deeply inter-vened with its ideological component, as it was the propaganda that created the ideas of "what" and "who" are the main enemies of the Soviet Union, and then enforced it in the society, in the conscience of Soviet citizens.

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