Russia Between East and West ─ Scholarly Debates on Eurasianism

The six chapters presented by Shlapentokh (Indiana U. and the Hoover Institution at Stanford U.) explore different aspects of Russian Eurasianism as intellectual and ideological movement over the course of the 20th century. The book opens with a discussion of Russian views of the Orient at the opening of the century and the genesis of Eurasianism. Remaining chapters explore Eurasianism as a reaction to the rise of pan-Turkism, the role of philosopher Lev Karsavin in the Eurasian movement, theories of absolutism and authority in Eurasian ideology, Polish reactions to Eurasianism in the interwar period, and anti-Semitism in Eurasian historiography (particularly in the writings of Lev Gumilev). Annotation c2007 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Dmitry Shlapentokh was educated in the former USSR (Moscow State University) and in the USA (Ph.D., University of Chicago). He is currently Associate Professor at Indiana University and holds teaching/research appointments in various institutions, including the Russian Research Center (Harvard University), and the Hoover Institution (Stanford University). He is the author of several books and almost a hundred articles and book chapters.