Editing Samizdat (section)

===Literary===
[[File:Samizdat Vasily Grossmann Everything Flows Cover.jpg|thumb|A typewritten edition of ''Everything Flows'' by [[Vasily Grossman]], Moscow]]
In its early years, samizdat defined itself as a primarily literary phenomenon that included the distribution of poetry, classic unpublished Russian literature, and famous 20th century foreign literature.{{sfn|Stelmakh|2001|p=148}} Literature played a key role in the existence of the samizdat phenomenon. For instance, the USSR's refusal to publish Boris Pasternak's epic novel, ''[[Doctor Zhivago (novel)|Doctor Zhivago]]'' led to the novel's subsequent underground publication.{{sfn|Meerson-Aksenov|Shragin|1977|p=27}} Likewise, the circulation of Alexander Solzhenitsyn's famous work about the gulag system, ''[[The Gulag Archipelago]]'', promoted a samizdat revival during the mid-1970s.{{sfn|Joo|2004|p=575}} However, because samizdat by definition placed itself in opposition to the state, samizdat works became increasingly focused on the state's violation of human rights, before shifting towards politics.{{sfn|Meerson-Aksenov|Shragin|1977|p=30}}