Stalin's ghost: the legacies of Soviet history and the future of Russia

Book synopsis: Orlando Figes (1959) wrote, inter alia, a standard work on the Russian Revolution, A People's Tragedy: The Russian Revolution, 1891-1924. . In his most recent work, The Whisperers: Figes report of the fate of ordinary Russian families who lived under the terror of Stalin Private Life in Stalin's Russia, does Figes' books have been translated into several languages, including in Dutch. In Telderslezing Figes went in the way the brutal Soviet regime individualism in Russia tried to destroy. In addition, the regime was extremely successful. Long after the Soviet domination existed among many Russians - even those who were too young to have experienced the Soviet regime deliberately - fear of losing freedom. Some people lived with the packed suitcases, so they could any time off, if needed. Figes explains in his account of how this deep-seated fear arose and could persist. There was also attention to the consequences of this development for contemporary Russia where the rule of law and democracy are increasingly being dismantled and the Soviet past is condoned and even glorified

The dominant ethnic moment: towards the abolition of 'whiteness'?

International audienc

Crimea: the last crusade

The terrible conflict that dominated the mid 19th century, the Crimean War killed at least 800,000 men and pitted Russia against a formidable coalition of Britain, France and the Ottoman Empire. It was a war for territory, provoked by fear that if the Ottoman Empire were to collapse then Russia could control a huge swathe of land from the Balkans to the Persian Gulf. But it was also a war of religion, driven by a fervent, populist and ever more ferocious belief by the Tsar and his ministers that it was Russia’s task to rule all Orthodox Christians and control the Holy Land. Orlando Figes’ major new book reimagines this extraordinary war, in which the stakes could not have been higher and which was fought with a terrible mixture of ferocity and incompetence. It was both a recognisably modern conflict - the first to be extensively photographed, the first to employ the telegraph, the first ‘newspaper war’ - and a traditional one, with illiterate soldiers, amateur officers and huge casualties caused by disease. The iconic moments of the war - the Charge of the Light Brigade, the Siege of Sebastopol, the impact of Florence Nightingale - are all here, but there is also a rich sense of the Crimea itself and the culture that was destroyed by the fighting. Drawing on a huge range of fascinating sources, Figes also gives the lived experience of the war, from that of the ordinary British soldier in his snow-filled trench, to the haunted, gloomy, narrow figure of Tsar Nicholas himself as he vows to take on the whole world in his hunt for religious salvation

Russia is becoming a dictatorship

For over 25 years, the Greenhaven Press Opposing Viewpoints Series has developed and set the standard for current-issue studies. With more than 90 volumes covering nearly every controversial contemporary topic, Opposing Viewpoints is the leading source for libraries and classrooms in need of current-issue materials. Each title explores a specific issue by placing expert opinions in a unique pro/con format. The viewpoints are selected from a wide range of highly respected and often hard-to-find sources and publications. By choosing from such diverse sources and including both popular and unpopular views, the Opposing Viewpoints editorial team has adhered to its commitment to editorial objectivity. Readers are exposed to many sides of a debate, which promotes issue awareness as well as critical thinking. In short, Opposing Viewpoints is the best research and learning tool for exploring the issues that continually shape and define our turbulent and changing world