Postsocialist Europe

Anthropological Perspectives from Home

Laszlo Kurti editor Peter Skalník editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Berghahn Books

Published:1st Nov '11

Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back

Postsocialist Europe cover

Now that nearly twenty years have passed since the collapse of the Soviet bloc there is a need to understand what has taken place since that historic date and where we are at the moment. Bringing together authors with different historical, cultural, regional and theoretical backgrounds, this volume engages in debates that address new questions arising from recent developments, such as whether there is a need to reject or uphold the notion of post-socialism as both a necessary and valid concept ignoring changes and differences across both time and space. The authors’ firsthand ethnographies from their own countries belie such a simplistic notion, revealing, as they do, the cultural, social, and historical diversity of countries of Central and Southeastern Europe.

The major contribution of the volume lays in its rethinking of the postsocialist paradigm from an insider’s perspective. By taking a longue durée perspective on their societies, contributors explore cultural, political, and economic transformations, revealing the complex interactions between global processes and specific localities. Their scholarship prove,. if still necessary, that Central and Eastern European anthropology is thriving both at home and abroad.  ·  JRAI

"This book may be a pioneering endeavour, not only in the study of anthropological changes in the heart of Europe, but also for Central European socio-anthropological research. It is nearly impossible to compare this to other books in this field as it is truly an innovative work and acts as a source of inspiration for additional research and the deepening of discussion on existing materials  ·  Central European Journal of International and Security Studies

“…all these case studies presented are fascinating, covering as they do often little or unresearched topics…This collection should be interesting for people engaged in East European studies.  ·  Journal of Ethnology and Folkloristics

Seeking to dispel the myth that Eastern European anthropology is parochial and centered on folkloric research, the volume showcases rich ethnographies that spell out the connections between local and global processes and provide insight into new social hierarchies and marginalities.  · Anthropos

ISBN: 9780857451576

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 454g

336 pages