{"product_id":"soviet-self-hatred-the-secret-identities-of-postsocialism-in-contemporary-russia-9781501769887","title":"Soviet Self-Hatred: The Secret Identities of Postsocialism in Contemporary Russia","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSoviet Self-Hatred\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003e examines the imaginary Russian identities that emerged following the collapse of the Soviet Union.\u003c\/b\u003e Eliot Borenstein shows how these identities are best understood as balanced on a simple axis between pride and shame, shifting in response to Russia's standing in the global community, its anxieties about internal dissension and foreign threats, and its stark socioeconomic inequalities.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThrough close readings of Russian fiction, films, jokes, songs, fan culture, and Internet memes, Borenstein identifies and analyzes four distinct types with which Russians identify or project onto others. They are the \u003ci\u003esovok\u003c\/i\u003e (the Soviet yokel); the New Russian (the despised, ridiculous nouveau riche), the \u003ci\u003evatnik\u003c\/i\u003e (the belligerent, jingoistic patriot), and the Orc (the ultraviolent savage derived from a deliberate misreading of Tolkien's epic). Through these contested identities, \u003ci\u003e Soviet Self-Hatred\u003c\/i\u003e shows how stories people tell about themselves can, tragically, become the stories that others are forced to live.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003eEliot Borenstein is Professor of Russian and Slavic Studies at New York University. His books include\u003ci\u003e Plots against Russia\u003c\/i\u003e and\u003ci\u003e Meanwhile, in Russia...\u003c\/i\u003e. Follow him on X @eliotb2002 and visit him online at eliotborenstein.net.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"Cornell University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50390053683474,"sku":"9781501769887","price":28.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_bc87ea5b-73db-4f56-8c33-b78a36176be6.jpg?v=1728937556","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/soviet-self-hatred-the-secret-identities-of-postsocialism-in-contemporary-russia-9781501769887","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}