gender inequalityglobal civil societypostsocialismsocial capitalviolent histories
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Abstract (AI)
Preface and Acknowledgements 1. Introduction: Postsocialism as a Topic of Anthropological Investigation (i) Farewell to the socialist 'other' Chris Hann, (ii) Does the category 'postsocialist' still make sense? Caroline Humphrey (iii) Whither postsocialism? Katherine Verdery Part One: Social Capital, Trust and Legitimacy 2. The Advantages of Being Collectivised Martha Lampland 3. Economic Crisis and Ritual Decline in Rural Eastern Europe Gerald Creed 4. The Social Production of Mistrust Christian Giordano and Dobrinka Kostova Part Two: Dimensions of Inequality: Gender, Class and 'Underclass' 5. Retreat to the household?: Gendered Domains in postsocialist Poland Frances Pine 6. The Unmaking of an East-Central European Working Class David Kideckel 7. Deprivation, the Roma and 'the underclass' Michael Stewart Part Three: Violent Histories and the Renewal of Identities 8. Intolerant Sovereignties and 'Multi-Multi' Protectorates: competition over religious sites and (in)tolerance in the Balkans Robert Hayden 9. Withdrawing from the Land: social and spiritual crisis in the indigenous Russian Arctic Piers Vitebsky 10. Remnants of Revolution in China Stefan Feuchtwang Part Four: Stretching Postsocialism 11. Rethinking Chinese Consumption: social palliatives and the rhetorics of transition in postsocialist China Kevin Latham 12. How Far Do Analyses of Post-Socialism travel?: the case of Central Asia Deniz Kandiyoti 13. 'Eurasia', Ideology and the Political Imagination in Provincial Russia Caroline Humphrey Part Five: Democracy Export and Global Civil Society 14. Seeding Civil Society Ruth Mandel 15. Post-Post-Socialism and the New New Elites: project society in the Balkans Steven Sampson 16. Afterword: globalism and postsocialist prospects Don Kalb Index
Key Findings
1
Inequalities in postsocialist societies manifest along gender, class, and 'underclass' lines, including gendered retreats to the household, unmaking of the working class, and deprivation among Roma.
2
Social capital, trust, and legitimacy in postsocialist contexts show varied dynamics including advantages of collectivization, ritual decline during economic crises, and socially produced mistrust.
3
The postsocialist concept stretches geographically and thematically: consumption and transition rhetorics in China, applicability to Central Asia, provincial Russian 'Eurasia' ideologies, and the global spread of democracy export and civil society projects.
4
The volume frames 'postsocialism' as a broad anthropological topic questioning whether the category still makes sense and exploring its future directions.
5
Violent histories and identity renewal are prominent, with contested religious sovereignties in the Balkans, withdrawal from land and spiritual crisis in the Russian Arctic, and revolutionary remnants in China.
Research Object
Postsocialism as an anthropological topic (comparative postsocialist societies and transformations)
Research Subject
Sociocultural, political and economic transformations in postsocialist contexts, including social capital, trust, legitimacy, inequality (gender, class, underclass), identity renewal, consumption, civil society and political imaginaries
Publication Details
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2003-09-01
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