Militarized masculinity in post-Soviet Russia: A gendered analysis of state and society in the context of the Chechen wars

Militarized Masculinity in Post-Soviet Russia: A Gendered Analysis of State and Society in the Context of the Chechen Wars brings together the study of gender, militarization, and post-communist-transformation. The dissertation applies the concept of "militarized masculinity" developed by feminist scholars of International Relations to a critical examination of conscription and war in post-Soviet Russia. The term "militarized masculinity" underscores the need to investigate how masculinity and the military become linked, rather than assume that men are essentially militaristic. In this study I explore the impact of state, military, and societal actors as well as the post-communist transformation and Chechen wars on notions of militarized masculinity in Russia.The Russian case demonstrates a number of things that have broader significance for the study of International Relations. First, gender is central to states' conscription policy and ability to wage war. Second, socio-economic changes profoundly affect the link between masculinity and the military. Third, there is no straightforward connection between men and militarism, and between women and anti-militarism. Finally, the analysis reveals numerous contradictions in militarized masculinity at the level of the state, military, society, and the individual in post-Soviet Russia. These contradictions paint a complex picture of de- and re-militarization, in which gender is part of the terrain on which militarization is both achieved and contested.The project draws on interviews conducted with draft evaders, soldiers' mothers activists, and veterans in Samara (Russia) in 2006. The chapters of the dissertation analyze the central role of militarized masculinity in the Soviet Union, the relationship between leadership and masculinity during the two Chechen wars, the conscription crisis in post-Soviet Russia, different currents within the soldiers' mothers movements, and the experiences of Chechen war veterans. I argue that militarized masculinity has been both reproduced and challenged in post-Soviet Russia.