Peasant Russia: Family and Community in the Post-Emancipation Period / Edition 1

by Christine D. Worobec

Overview

Peasant Russia is a comprehensive examination of peasant life in central Russia in the decades immediately following serf emancipation. Using interdisciplinary methods of family history, anthropology, ethnography, and women's studies, Christine Worobec explores the world of peasant households and communities, elements of which live on in today's Soviet Union. In full detail she shows how peasant Russia retained its traditional institutions and customary practices in the face of the economic changes associated with industrialization and urbanization. The book draws on previously unexamined judicial, folklore, and household records to assess the durability of the extended Russian peasant family and the customs linking it to the community. The Russian peasants portrayed here actively shaped their society, developing a variety of economic and social strategies to cope with their harsh environment and the demands of the state. Discussing their efforts to safeguard their way of life through courtship and marriage rituals and through such social restrictions as property devolution practices, a misogynist patriarchalism, and severe penalties for deviant behavior, Worobec reveals that peasant traditionalism impeded the impact of modernization and cushioned its effects.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780875805702
Publisher:	Cornell University Press
Publication date:	10/01/1995
Series:	NIU Series in Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies
Edition description:	REVISED
Pages:	271
Sales rank:	1,194,723
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.61(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

Table of Contents

Table of Contents
Preface
Introduction
I. Resources and Obligations
II. Family Rebirth: The Customs of Property Devolution
III. Family Life Cycle and Household Structures
IV. New Players, Old Games: Courtship under the Community's Watchful Eye
V. Marriage: Family and Community Renewal
VI. The Culture of Patriarchy
Conclusion
Glossary
Bibliography
Index

Editorial Reviews

"An outstanding volume.... Worobec's splendid book brings us closer to understanding the fiber of peasant society and the dynamics of the family."—American Historical Review

"An enjoyable and informative book."—Slavic Review

"The most comprehensive recent book of its kind... a major contribution.... Beautifully written and well-researched."—Canadian Slavonic Papers

From the Publisher