Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

In this unprecedented work on the status and role of intellectuals in Soviet political life, a former Soviet sociologist maps out the delicate, often paradoxical, ties between the political regime and the creative thinkers who play a major part in the movement toward modernization. Beginning with Stalin, Vladimir Shlapentokh explores the mutual need and antagonism that have existed between political leaders and intellectuals. What emerges is a fascinating portrayal of the Soviet intellectual network since the 1950s, which touches on such topics as the role of literature and film in political opposition, levels of opposition (open, legal, and private), and the spread of paranoia as fueled by the KGB. Throughout he shows how the intellectual communityusually a cohesive, liberal grouphas fared under Khrushchev's cautious tolerance, Brezhnev's repressions, and now Gorbachev's Glasnost.Shlapentokh maintains, however, that under Glasnost freer speech has revealed a more pronounced divergence between liberal and conservative thinkers, and has allowed for open conservative opposition to the reformatory measures of Gorbachev and the liberals. He argues that one of the strongest checks on reform is the growing presence of Russophilism--a movement supporting Russian nationalism and Stalin's concept of socialism--among the political elite and the masses. Although the role of the liberal intellectuals in the late 1980s was less prominent than it was in the 1960s, Shlapentokh asserts that they remain the major agent of modernization in the Soviet Union, as well as in other socialist countries.Originally published in 1990.The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

Soviet Union -- Intellectual life. --- Soviet Union -- Politics and government -- 1953-1985. --- Soviet Union -- Politics and government -- 1985-1991. --- Soviet Union --- Intellectual life. --- Politics and government --- Intellectual life --- From 1917 --- 1953-1985 --- 1986 --- -Soviet Union - Intellectual life - 1917 --- -Soviet nion - Politics and government - 1953-1985. --- Soviet Union - Politics and government - 1986 --- -Soviet Union --- HISTORY / Russia & the Former Soviet Union. --- -HISTORY / Russia & the Former Soviet Union. --- Soviet Union - Intellectual life - 1917

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Contemporary social science avoids the discussion of fear as a major element of social life and as a factor that shapes social order and the quality of life. The author wants to fill this lacuna. The fear of punishments for violating the laws imposed by the state and other social institutions, such as the family, public opinion, the church and others, are useful for the maintenance order in society. The author's views oppose the mainstream of American social science, which is hostile toward coercion and the state in general, and sees social order as based only on the allegiance of the individual to the dominant culture and self-regulation. Pointing to the flaws of these views, which are mostly based on the Lockean-Parsonian tradition, as well as on the postmodern perspective, the author proposes that the Hobbesian viewpoint be included in social analysis. He assumes that social order is shaped not only from & below,& but also from & above& with the state as a positive agent.

Fear. --- Social structure. --- Social values.

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Sociology --- Sociology --- Political aspects --- Soviet Union --- Politics and government.

Choose an application

• Reference Manager
• EndNote
• RefWorks (Direct export to RefWorks)

Do Americans live in a liberal capitalist society, where evenhanded competition rules the day, or a society in which big money, private security, and personal relations determine key social outcomes? Vladimir Shlapentokh and Joshua Woods argue that the answer to these questions cannot be found among the conventional models used to describe the nation. Offering a new analytical tool, the authors present a provocative explanation of the nature of contemporary society by comparing its essential characteristics to those of medieval European societies. Their feudal model emphasizes five elements: the weakness of the state and its inability to protect its territory, guarantee the security of its citizens, and enforce laws; conflicts and collusions between and within organizations that involve corruption and other forms of illegal or semilegal actions; the dominance of personal relations in political and economic life; the prevalence of an elitist ideology; and the use of private agents and organizations for the provision of safety and security. Feudal America urges readers to suspend their forward-thinking and futurist orientations, question linear notions of social and historical progression, and look for explanations of contemporary social problems in medieval European history.

SOCIAL SCIENCE / Sociology / General. --- United States --- Social conditions --- Economic conditions --- Politics and government --- Sociology. --- United States -- Economic conditions -- 21st century. --- United States -- Politics and government -- 21st century. --- United States -- Social conditions -- 21st century.