Solzhenitsyn: The Historical-Spiritual Destinies of Russia and the West (NIU Series in Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies) - Tapa dura

"Congdon's sociohistorical and political focus is formidable, and he brilliantly supports his premise that Solzhenitsyn's writings expose the nature of totalitarian power and its corruptive effects on human lives in Russia. . . . Highly recommended." --CHOICE "Lee Congdon has succeeded in encapsulating Solzhenitsyn's intellectual engagement with the twentieth century through an integration of Solzhenitsyn's corpus into its historical, political, philosophical, and religious context. This is a masterful accomplishment and a major contribution to the field of Solzhenitsyn studies." --Joseph Pearce, author of Solzhenitsyn: A Soul in Exile "This book is lucidly written and at times quite eloquent. Congdon's decision to analyze Solzhenitsyn's writing and thought in the context of a Russian revolutionary tradition that culminated in nihilism and revolutionary despotism provides an illuminating context for understanding the breadth and depth of his reflection." --Daniel J. Mahoney, author of The Other Solzhenitsyn: Telling the Truth about a Misunderstood Writer and Thinker "Lee Congdon's book comprises a short introduction to the historical and cultural context important for understanding the Nobel laureate Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's life and writings....[T]he book's lucid style and choice of illustrative examples make for easy and pleasant reading." -The Russian Review "One must applaud Lee Congdon, emeritus professor of history, James Madison University, for this timely volume." -The Wanderer

This study of Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918-2008) and his writings focuses on his reflections on the religiopolitical trajectories of Russia and the West, understood as distinct civilizations. What perhaps most sets Russia apart from the West is the Orthodox Christian faith. The mature Solzhenitsyn returned to the Orthodox faith of his childhood while serving an eight-year sentence in the GULag Archipelago. He believed that when men forget God, communism or a similar catastrophe is likely to be their fate. In his examination of the author and his work, Lee Congdon explores the consequences of the atheistic socialism that drove the Russian revolutionary movement. Beginning with a description of the post-revolutionary Russia into which Solzhenitsyn was born, Congdon outlines the Bolshevik victory in the civil war, the origins of the concentration camp system, and the Bolsheviks' war on Christianity and the Russian Orthodox Church. He then focuses on Solzhenitsyn's arrest near the war's end, his time in the labor camps, and his struggle with cancer. Congdon describes his time in exile and increasing alienation from the Western way of life, as well as his return home and his final years. He concludes with a reminder of Solzhenitsyn's warning to the West that it was on a path parallel to that which Russia had followed into the abyss. This important study will appeal to scholars and educated general readers with an interest in Solzhenitsyn, Russia, Christianity, and the fate of Western civilization.