Restructuring Post-Communist Russia

Written by Russian and Western scholars, this collection of original essays presents a general overview of political change in Russia since 1991. Rather than interpret the collapse of state socialism as "the end of history" or the beginning of the "transition" to a liberal, free market democracy, the contributors examine recent Russian history by analyzing it in comparison with the histories of other states of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. They address topics of national identity, demographic change, and the characteristics of Russian democracy.

The end of the Soviet Union was a world defining moment of the twentieth century, but what comes after Socialism? This collection of original essays--written by Russian scholars and scholars from the West --is a general overview of political change in Russia since 1991. Rather than see the collapse of state socialism as "the end of History" or the beginning of the "transition" to liberal, free market democracy, the contributors instead examine recent Russian history and note that the direction is far from clear. The essays include analysis of Russia specifically, and in comparison with other states of the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, and address the topics of national identity, demographic change, and the characteristics of Russian democracy.