1.

Record Nr.

UNISA996472053303316

Autore

Zimmerman William

Titolo

Ruling Russia : Authoritarianism from the Revolution to Putin / / William Zimmerman

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Princeton, NJ : , : Princeton University Press, , [2016]

©2016

ISBN

1-4008-8083-1

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (356 p.)

Altri autori (Persone)

ZimmermanWilliam

Disciplina

320.947

Soggetti

Authoritarianism - Russia (Federation)

Authoritarianism - Soviet Union

Democratization - Russia (Federation)

POLITICAL SCIENCE / Political Ideologies / Communism, Post-Communism & Socialism

Electronic books.

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di contenuto

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- CHAPTER 1. From Democratic Centralism to Democratic Centralism -- CHAPTER 2. Alternative Mobilization Strategies, 1917-1934 -- CHAPTER 3. From Narrow Selectorate to Autocracy -- CHAPTER 4. The Great Purge -- CHAPTER 5. From Totalitarianism to Welfare Authoritarianism -- CHAPTER 6. Uncertainty and "Democratization" -- CHAPTER 7. Democratizing Russia, 1991-1997 -- CHAPTER 8. The Demise of Schumpeterian Democracy, the Return to Certainty, and Normal ("Full") Authoritarianism, 1998-2008 -- CHAPTER 9. The Return of Uncertainty? -- CHAPTER 10. The Past and Future of Russian Authoritarianism -- Afterword to the Paperback Edition -- Selected Bibliography -- Index

Sommario/riassunto

When the Soviet Union collapsed, many hoped that Russia's centuries-long history of autocratic rule might finally end. Yet today's Russia appears to be retreating from democracy, not progressing toward it. Ruling Russia is the only book of its kind to trace the history of modern Russian politics from the Bolshevik Revolution to the presidency of



Vladimir Putin. It examines the complex evolution of communist and post-Soviet leadership in light of the latest research in political science, explaining why the democratization of Russia has all but failed.William Zimmerman argues that in the 1930s the USSR was totalitarian but gradually evolved into a normal authoritarian system, while the post-Soviet Russian Federation evolved from a competitive authoritarian to a normal authoritarian system in the first decade of the twenty-first century. He traces how the selectorate-those empowered to choose the decision makers-has changed across different regimes since the end of tsarist rule. The selectorate was limited in the period after the revolution, and contracted still further during Joseph Stalin's dictatorship, only to expand somewhat after his death. Zimmerman also assesses Russia's political prospects in future elections. He predicts that while a return to totalitarianism in the coming decade is unlikely, so too is democracy.Rich in historical detail, Ruling Russia is the first book to cover the entire period of the regime changes from the Bolsheviks to Putin, and is essential reading for anyone seeking to understand why Russia still struggles to implement lasting democratic reforms.