Men in Contemporary Russia: The Fallen Heroes of Post-Soviet Change?

by Kay,Rebecca

• ISBN13: 9780754644859
• ISBN10: 0754644855
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-02-28
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Rebecca Kay assesses how men in post-Soviet Russia are represented through media and popular discourses. Using case studies she explores the challenges which have arisen for men since 1991 and the ways in which their responses are shaped by and viewed through the prism of widely accepted attitudes towards gender. The lives and concerns of men in provincial Russia are examined through ethnographic fieldwork, combining extensive participant observation with in-depth interviews. The book reveals how individual men strive to maintain a sense of equilibrium between the activities in which they are engaged and the ways in which they are perceived, both by others and by themselves. The findings of the research have produced significant areas of contrast and comparison with the author's earlier work on women. This is drawn out throughout the book, placing the study of Russian men in a broader gendered context. The issues raised by the men mirror concerns discussed in men's studies literature and popular discourse beyond Russia. The book is therefore of interest to a wider international audience as well as contributing to ongoing interdisciplinary debates, in Russian Studies, Anthropology, Sociology and Human Geography, addressing the need for new approaches to understanding post-Socialist change.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	vii
Acknowledgements	ix
Introduction: Studying men in Russia: Historical perspectives and international contexts	1	(18)
Heroes or villains?: 'Being a man' in contemporary Russia	19	(28)
Part I: Men in the Public Sphere
Military service: Rite of passage or waste of time?	47	(26)
`What kind of a man doesn't provide for his family?': Making ends meet in the new labour market	73	(26)
`What's a man without capital?': The pitfalls and potential of private enterprise	99	(28)
Part II: Men in the Private Sphere
`I couldn't live without my kids': Fatherhood as a contested identity	127	(26)
`A woman has a right to expect certain conditions': Personal relationships between men and women	153	(26)
`Just give me an aspirin and I'll be fine': The provision of social services and support for men: A case study of the Altai Regional Crisis Centre for Men	179	(28)
Conclusions: New perspectives on men in contemporary Russia	207	(8)
Appendix: Respondents' socio-demographic data	215	(4)
Bibliography	219	(14)
Index	233