Russia Against Modernity

Alexander Etkind (Central European University, Vienna)

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English

Polity Press
21 April 2023

Politics & government

Putin’s war is a “special operation” against modernity. The invasion has been directed against Ukraine, but the war has a broader target: the modern world of climate awareness, energy transition and digital labor. By trading oil and gas, promoting Trump and Brexit, spreading corruption, boosting inequality and homophobia, subsidizing far-right movements and destroying Ukraine, Putin’s clique aims at suppressing the ongoing transformation of modern societies.

Alexander Etkind distinguishes between Russia’s pompous, weaponized paleomodernity, on the one hand, and the lean, decentralized gaiamodernity of the Anthropocene, on the other. Putin’s clique has used various strategies – from climate denialism and electoral interference to war and genocide – to resist and subvert modernity. Working on political, cultural and even demographic levels, social mechanisms convert the vicious energy of the oil curse into all-out aggression. Dissecting these mechanisms, Etkind’s brief but rigorous analyses of social structuration, cultural dynamics and family models reveal the agency that drives the Russian war against modernity. This short, sharp critique of the Russian regime combines political economy, social history and demography to predict the decolonizing and defederating of Russia.

By: Alexander Etkind (Central European University Vienna)
Imprint: Polity Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 218mm, Width: 142mm, Spine: 18mm
Weight: 318g
ISBN: 9781509556571
ISBN 10: 1509556575
Pages: 176
Publication Date: 21 April 2023
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Alexander Etkind is a professor at the Central European University in Vienna.

Reviews for Russia Against Modernity

“Etkind situates Putin’s 2022 war in a much bigger story about Russian history and the country’s role as a major oil producer in a world facing a climate crisis. A concise book packed with big ideas.” Shaun Walker, The Guardian