Reenacting the Enemy

Isurin brings deep expertise on culture and media in the U.S. and Russia to show how prejudice toward the other grows out its desire to project its own attitudes and values as superior. She then goes on to demonstrate how this dynamic organizes national memory. She also argues that at least in some instances an independent, liberal media in Russia provides a surprising critical view that is less evident on the American side. Her conclusions may be uncomfortable for both American and Russian readers, but that is the point and one of the book's great contributions. This is a brilliant contribution to memory studies in general, and to advancing understanding of why relations between Russia and the U.S. remain so fraught. * James V. Wertsch, David R. Francis Distinguished Professor, Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis. Author of How Nations Remember: A Narrative Approach *
In a masterful marriage between a deep understanding of Russian and American political culture and a careful reading of both countries' media, Isurin provides a unique insight into how media both shapes and reflects the collective memories of a nation. This book is a must-read for any student interested in the current antagonisms between Russia and the US, as well as for students of collective memory exploring the role of media in politics. * William Hirst, Professor of Psychology, The New School for Social Research *
Overall, Reenacting the Enemy. Collective Memory Construction in Russian and US Media is a useful, thought-provoking and meticulous book...It will be of value to those interested in cognitive psychology, international relations and media studies, especially the interplay between collective memory, media and the mind. * Tingting Hu, Associate Professor, School of International Studies, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou, People's Republic of China, *
A brief review cannot do justice to the extraordinary depth of the interdisciplinary analysis of collective memory formation from media accounts in Russia and the US given in Reenacting the Enemy: Collective Memory Construction in Russian and US Memory. In this book, Ludmila Isurin considers three processes of collective memory construction, including the deliberate or subconscious reorientation of accepted historical facts, different interpretations of the causes of past conflicts, and the understanding of who should be blamed for these conflicts. * Henry (Chip) Carey, EuropeNow *