Russia's Carnival

The Smells, Sights, and Sounds of Transition

Nonfiction, History, Eastern Europe
Cover of the book Russia's Carnival by Christoph Neidhart, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Christoph Neidhart ISBN: 9781461642190
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Publication: November 13, 2002
Imprint: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers Language: English
Author: Christoph Neidhart
ISBN: 9781461642190
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Publication: November 13, 2002
Imprint: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Language: English

This colorfully drawn and acutely observed book explores Russia by engaging all our senses. Today's Russia smells different from the Soviet Union. The country looks and sounds different, its touch is different and its food tastes different. Thus, Christoph Neidhart argues, Russia is truly a changed country from the Soviet Union it was, little more than a decade ago. Russian society is rapidly urbanizing and modernizing, as can be perceived by all senses, including the awareness of space and the conception of time. After almost a century, space can be privately owned and freely traded; time too has become commodified. New role models and new ways to express social status are emerging. Russia has become a 'monetized' economy as the old Soviet practice of provision by networking has grown obsolete. Russia thus readies itself gradually to grow into a Western-style, middle-class society with a free market and democratic polity. The author assesses these rapid changes using the evocative metaphor of the carnival to understand the chaotic inversion of the Communist structure of society. He explores the transition's traps and shortcomings—such as the privatization of politics and the looting of the state's assets—and compares this process to the modernization Western society underwent a century earlier.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

This colorfully drawn and acutely observed book explores Russia by engaging all our senses. Today's Russia smells different from the Soviet Union. The country looks and sounds different, its touch is different and its food tastes different. Thus, Christoph Neidhart argues, Russia is truly a changed country from the Soviet Union it was, little more than a decade ago. Russian society is rapidly urbanizing and modernizing, as can be perceived by all senses, including the awareness of space and the conception of time. After almost a century, space can be privately owned and freely traded; time too has become commodified. New role models and new ways to express social status are emerging. Russia has become a 'monetized' economy as the old Soviet practice of provision by networking has grown obsolete. Russia thus readies itself gradually to grow into a Western-style, middle-class society with a free market and democratic polity. The author assesses these rapid changes using the evocative metaphor of the carnival to understand the chaotic inversion of the Communist structure of society. He explores the transition's traps and shortcomings—such as the privatization of politics and the looting of the state's assets—and compares this process to the modernization Western society underwent a century earlier.

More books from Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Cover of the book Private History in Public by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Connecting the Dots in World History, A Teacher's Literacy Based Curriculum by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Globalization and Media by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Modern Liberty and Its Discontents by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book A History of U.S. Nuclear Testing and Its Influence on Nuclear Thought, 1945–1963 by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Maya Cultural Heritage by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book New Perspectives on the Civil War by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Combating the Achievement Gap by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Called for Life by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Creative Management of Small Public Libraries in the 21st Century by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book 100 Books Every Folk Music Fan Should Own by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Patristic and Medieval Atonement Theory by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Listening Is Learning by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book Teaching Poetry, Embracing Perspectives by Christoph Neidhart
Cover of the book The Myth of Aristotle's Development and the Betrayal of Metaphysics by Christoph Neidhart
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy