Russian Culture, Property Rights, and the Market Economy [Paperback]

This 2007 book illustrates why a market economy does not succeed in Russia.This book draws a comparison between Western and Russian culture (especially theology, literature and art), and shows the connection between the observed differences in these fields and the expected differences in law, economics, and the political structure. It shows why privatization and a thriving market economy do not succeed in Russia and why it would take more than money to remedy the situation.This book draws a comparison between Western and Russian culture (especially theology, literature and art), and shows the connection between the observed differences in these fields and the expected differences in law, economics, and the political structure. It shows why privatization and a thriving market economy do not succeed in Russia and why it would take more than money to remedy the situation.This book draws a comparison between Western and Russian culture (especially theology, literature and art), and shows the connection between the observed differences in these fields and the expected differences in law, economics, and the political structure. It shows why privatization and a thriving market economy do not succeed in Russia and why it would take more than money to remedy the situation. It predicts that Russia's economic woes are destined to dominate the life of the country for many more years, unless Russian society undergoes a profound, and not necessarily welcome, cultural transformation.1. Introduction; 2. Humanism; 3. Individualism; 4. Authority; 5. Wealth; 6. Truth; 7. The icon and the word. Procaccia's book is a bold attempt to explain Russia's inability to develop an effective capitalist economy, arguing that Russian mentality is rooted in an iconic view of the world - one that denies human individuality and hence the possibility of contract. Procaccia sees 'Eternal Russia as trapped in a single mind-set which even Communism failed to dislodge.
Peter Rutland, Wesleyal³#