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The definition of Russian Otherness has always played a significant role in the construction of European identity, and on the other hand, Russia's idea of Europe and its engagement with the West have been crucial in defining Russian identity. This essay reconstructs some relevant images and representations of Russia and its location between Europe and Asia that emerged between the eighteenth and twenty-first centuries, as they're highly relevant in the context of the current bitter confrontation between Europe/West and Russia, which is exacerbated by the dynamics of mutual essentialization and stereotyping of the enemy in wartime propaganda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Studi e Materiali di Storia delle Religioni is the property of Editrice Morcelliana S.p.A. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Scienza & Politica is the property of University of Bologna, Department of Political & Social Sciences Alma Mater Studiorum and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The essay proposes to carry out an overview of the main contributions that sociology, political sociology and political science have made to the study of the October Revolution of 1917, and its consequences on what the Soviet state will then be until its collapse in 1991. The panorama of social and political studies in this field is in fact quite varied. In addition to well-known works, such as the works of Milovan Djilas or James Burnham, research deserves to be known and appreciated which, despite having had less "fame", does not for this constitute works of lesser scientific value, such as, for give just two examples, the work of Waldemar Gurian or, in Italy, of Bruno Rizzi. As part of this review, we proceed to a discussion of the works dividing them according to the main perspectives with which they have faced the study of the Soviet Revolution and State. These perspectives can be divided as follows: a) the debate between juridical sciences and political sciences on the classification and definition of the Soviet regime; b) the role of bureaucracy in building the socialist state; c) the debate on totalitarianism and the Soviet case; d) the role of the elites in the October Revolution and in maintaining the regime achieved by it; e) mass society in twentieth-century Russia and the use of its characteristics by the revolutionary elite. The essay concludes by noting that a considerable part of the studies in question are still not translated from Russian or other Eastern European languages, and tries to answer the question about why totalitarianism, at least in the West, has found most of the scholars who have dealt with it, intent on analyzing mainly the Nazi case in Germany, and not the communist one in Russia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]