Soviet Self-Hatred: The Secret Identities of Postsocialism in Contemporary Russia

Soviet Self-Hatred examines the imaginary Russian identities that emerged following the collapse of the Soviet Union. 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.

Through close readings of Russian fiction, films, jokes, songs, fan culture, and Internet ...