J. Arch Getty is professor of history at UCLA. He lives in Los Angeles.
“A lively and interesting work, Practicing Stalinism will surely
spark historiographical controversy and should be the topic of wide
discussion.”—Lynne Viola, author of The Unknown Gulag: The Lost
World of Stalin's Special Settlements
*Lynne Viola*
“Getty argues that traditional Russian symbols and practices,
combined with clientelistic personal rule at all levels, pervaded
the Soviet and even post-Soviet political systems. His extensive
use of archive sources imparts authenticity and drama to a
compelling account of how the past overpowered a regime dedicated
to creating the future. An absorbing study.”—Geoffrey Hosking,
author of Russia and the Russians: A History
*Geoffrey Hosking*
“There hasn’t been much sign of Russian ‘democratization’ recently.
Perhaps it’s time to get back to history, Arch Getty’s new book
suggests, and the ‘deep structures’ of patrimonial power that have
underpinned Russian elite politics from medieval times up to the
present. This richly documented and wide-ranging study has made a
compelling case for doing so.”—Stephen White, University of
Glasgow
*Stephen White*
“A compelling account of the continuities and persistent practices
of governance in Russian history that shaped both the way Stalin
ruled the Soviet Union as well as how Putin dominates Russia today.
Getty deploys his vast knowledge of Stalinism to demonstrate that
patrimonial patterns of leadership and popular deference were as
much a part of the integrated Soviet system as were the
bureaucratic institutional norms of the state.”—Ronald Grigor Suny,
University of Michigan
*Ronald G. Suny*
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