Two pieces of Russian literature, "Salt" and "Everything Flows," depict the horrifying effects of the political turmoil in Russia during the communist revolution. The communist revolution sought to restructure not only the economic system, but also the social institutions such as family and religion. Although capitalism was the largest enemy to communist reform with respect to economics, the destruction of family was an important intermediate objective for the Russian communists. Russian communism passively, but systematically destroyed the familial bonds of trust and reliance, replacing them with the bonds of their newly-created society in order to make the people more subservient and powerless. Both Salt and Everything Flows have a recurring theme of moral degradation, particularly with respect to family, children, and women. This is moral decay happens in many different ways to all types of people, and no one seems to notice when it's happening to them. However, the subconscious nature of this widespread psychological transition did not undermine the power of its effect. As history shows, this silent societal change from familial bonds to state loyalty played a large role in the success of the communist revolution. In Salt, the main character, Isaak Babel is a Cossack fighter who seems to be at least a somewhat moral man, but is changed by peer pressure and unchecked power. A woman on the train he is guarding attempts to smuggle salt disguised as a baby (Chandler 243). Initially, the platoon of Cossacks suggest that she "won't be wanting her husband  when they're done with her, to which Babel rebukes them (243). He calls them "bollocks  and says "If you think back, platoon, over your own lives and remember how you yourselves were once infants in arms, you'll see that kind of talk isn't right (243).  This clearly indicates his personal value for family and moral treatment of women. A few minutes later when it is discovered that she is not carrying a baby, but instead, salt (presumably to sell in order to make money to feed her children), the platoon becomes angry and begins to shout obscenities at the woman. They condemn her for trying to make more for herself through capitalism which is the ideal that communism seeks to abolish. The platoon creates the "angry mob  effect, increasing the feelings of violence and hatred for this woman, while causing any element of compassion, mercy, or even basic respect to completely disappear. Babel gets caught up in the emotio