Cold War Tension

Following World War II, the United States and the Soviet Union, who had been allies during the war, emerged as the two major world superpowers. The two nations eventually became enemies over the conflicting ideologies of Communism and Capitalism and began a decade's long conflict known as the Cold War, because it never erupted into open fighting between the two countries. Instead, the war was fought by proxy in places like Korea and Viet Nam, and also covertly as spies from both sides tried to discover each other's secrets.

In the setting of the 1950's when "Goldfinger" was first published, the fictional Soviet anti-spy organization SMERSH would have seemed a natural adversary for Bond's English spy character. During the Cold War, the Soviets were often portrayed in popular Western culture as cold, ruthless and brutal, but also very intelligent and cunning. All of these features are...