Flexible Authoritarianism : Cultivating Ambition and Loyalty in Russia

Flexible Authoritarianism challenges the idea that the transnational rise of authoritarianism is a backlash against economic globalization and neoliberal capitalism.Flexible authoritarianism--a form of government that simultaneously incentivizes a can-do spirit and suppresses dissent--reflects the resonance between authoritarian and neoliberal ideologies in today's comeback of strongman rule.The book conveys the look and feel of flexible authoritarianism in Russia through the eyes of up-and-coming youth. Drawing on field observations, in-depth interviews, and analyses of documents and video clips, Anna Schwenck demonstrates how flexible authoritarianism is stabilized ideologically by the insignia of cool start-up capitalism and by familiar cultural forms such as the summer camp.It critically evaluates how loyalty to the regime--the order underlying political and economic life in a polity--is produced and contested among those young people who seek key positions in politics, business, the public sector, or creative industries.