It’s nice to see everyone’s textual analysis of The Odyssey It’s almost like the humanities give you entertainment, feelings, pleasure, and fun/interesting stuff to talk about, as well as lenses into both past and current society
Bradley Gorski
@bgorski.bsky.social
Literature and capitalism, esp in Russia. Prof at Georgetown. Erstwhile union organizer.
For @thetls.bsky.social I wrote about the conflicted legacies of the Soviet empire in modernist culture and contemporary literature Books reviewed by Nariman Skakov and Tamar Koplatadze Thanks to Rebecca Reich for the invite! www.the-tls.com/literature/l...
Anticolonial empire
When the literary theorist Victor Shklovsky travelled to Soviet Turkestan in 1929 to report on the triumphant construction of the Turksib railway, he
the-tls.com
Red Migrations has received an honourable mention by the American Comparative Literature Association for the 2026 René Wellek Prize! Congratulations, @bgorski.bsky.social and @dr-tg.bsky.social! Learn more about the book: bit.ly/47aPhet #SovietHistory #EasternEuropean #MigrationStudies
Happy to see the @newyorker.com got the description right. We’re in the middle of an outright assault on Higher Ed. Trump’s vindictive and illegal campaigns to destroy the best of our society are not “crackdowns,” they’re assaults, attacks, onslaughts.
Another reminder that it’s worth thinking about dissent in as many ways as possible these days. Resistance is always possible
Princeton University Press@princetonupress.bsky.social · 10mo agoCongratulations to Benjamin Nathans, whose book To the Success of Our Hopeless Cause won the @aseees.bsky.social Reginald Zelnik Book Prize in History, recognizing an outstanding history monograph published on Russia, Eastern Europe, or Eurasia! Explore his monumental work here: hubs.ly/Q03LzMJl0
I got to talk with Maria Lipman about my book last week. Check it out!
John Raimo@johnraimo.bsky.social · 10mo agoMaria Lipman interviews Bradley A. Gorski (@bgorski.bsky.social) for @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social: "Cultural Capitalism: Literature and the Market After Socialism" ( #bookhistory, #skystorians) newbooksnetwork.com/cultural-cap...
Masked agents kidnapping civilians, hanging 50 ft banners of the leader’s face, declaring war on an American city — that anyone can’t see this is evil is just insane
Masked agents kidnapping civilians, hanging 50 ft banners of the leader’s face, declaring war on an American city — that anyone can’t see this is evil is just insane
This guy says he wants universities to focus on the truth. Why wasn’t the question asked whether it bothers him that the political movement he has aligned himself with is based on a rigorously enforced lie?
The New York Times@nytimes.com · last yr.The conservative activist Christopher Rufo has become an influential voice in the ear of the Trump administration as it turns his strategy into a crackdown on higher education. Listen to our interview with Rufo on today's episode of "The Daily."
Universities: before you capitulate, remember that you’re up against a weak-willed petty tyrant who wasn’t able to face a stock market dip for more than a weak. He gives up all the time. He gives in all the time. He loses interest even more. Stand up. You’re stronger than this.
If a pediatrician talking about children dying “might be perceived as anti-government,” maybe the problem is not with the pediatrician
Joel S.@joelhs.bsky.social · last yr.NYU canceled an invited talk by the former president of Doctors Without Borders, out of fear her talk would be accused by the government of being both anti-Trump and antisemitic: ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/215...
TODAY @ NOON ET in NYC: COLUMBIA PROFESSORS TO HOLD EMERGENCY VIGIL AGAINST ADMIN CONCESSIONS TO TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. Columbia gates at 116th & Amsterdam Ave (Not Broadway) • Hands Off Our Students, Faculty, & Research • Defend Science • Defend Academic Freedom • Defend Freedom of Speech
SCOOP: Hooded ICE agents snatched Indian-born Georgetown postdoc Badar Suri from Rosslyn street Monday, per court filing. Like Khalil, linked to pro-Palestinian views & Rubio 'foreign policy' power, lawyer says. Then whisked to Louisiana. w/ @kyledcheney www.politico.com/news/2025/03...
Trump is seeking to deport another graduate student who is legally in the country, lawsuit says
Badar Khan Suri, a fellow at Georgetown, says he is being punished because of the suspected views of his wife, a U.S. citizen with Palestinian heritage.
politico.com
Today is the official pub date for my book, Cultural Capitalism. Get out there and protest extra-judicial arrests, the concerted destruction of expertise and knowledge creation, the defunding of social services, the attack on freedom of movement, and the gentle compliance of the Democratic Party.
Cultural Capitalism by Bradley A. Gorski | Hardcover | Cornell University Press
Cultural Capitalism explores Russian literature's eager embrace of capitalism in the post-Soviet era. When the Soviet Union fell, books were suddenly bought and sold as commodities. Russia's first bes...
cornellpress.cornell.edu
There is no word for this other than evil. Ukraine is being bombed daily by a leader who has engaged in war crimes. www.reuters.com/world/us/tru...
Exclusive: Trump plans to revoke legal status of Ukrainians who fled to US, sources say
U.S. President Donald Trump's administration is planning to revoke temporary legal status for some 240,000 Ukrainians who fled the conflict with Russia, a senior Trump official and three sources familiar with the matter said, potentially putting them on a fast-track to deportation.
reuters.com
Makes me want to read the whole collection cover to cover!
Kit Whitfield - fantasy writer@kitwhitfield.bsky.social · last yr.A lesser-known power of Shirley Jackson's 'The Lottery' is where it comes in its collection. Spoilers, but I suspect you know how 'The Lottery' ends. It's famous for a reason. But this is important: Jackson arranged the collection it was named after, and she chose the arrangement. 1/
I’m as disgusted as anyone with T&V’s behavior yesterday. But I don’t think Zelenskyy is getting his due. He wasn’t just the adult in the room. He handled himself with incredible dignity. He was walking into a trap. He knew it. He was prepared. And he refused to either back down or take the bait.
Today, along with 2,000 other NIH employees, I had to clear out my office 😭 It was truly the honor of my life to work with such incredibly passionate people focused on improving human health. I’ve never experienced a more positive culture where *everyone* cared about their job and serving others.
Random cover from the TBR pile: The Beasts by Leslie Garrett (1966) This first novel about a nice young man who gets involved in satanic orgies was selected as the "Maxwell E. Perkins Commemorative Novel" by Scribers. "Sorry about that, Maxwell," quipped one reviewer.
To be fair, with equal evidence, I assumed it was because a lush is in charge at the pentagon and all government employees (including FAA) are scared for their livelihoods.
What’s amazing about this is how narrow the band is. Record lows and highs are only 12 pts apart.
Andy Kaczynski@kfile.bsky.social · 2y agoA new Quinnipiac poll finds the Democratic Party at a record low (31% favorable) and the Republican Party at a record high (43% favorable) in voter opinion. poll.qu.edu/poll-release...
Meanwhile in Russia: state TV host Olga Skabeeva and pundit Spiridon Kilinkarov surmised that Donald Trump owes his presidency to Russia and should in return let them have all of Ukraine. youtu.be/tfF8VqKDs4I
State TV says Trump owes his presidency to Russia
YouTube video by Russian Media Monitor
youtu.be
@microsoft.com is charging you for AI you never wanted and didn’t ask for. If you don’t want to pay for this BS you need to go into your Office365 account and change your subscription to the cheaper option without AI. You were “upgraded” automatically.
I made a book! It’s about the wild Russian book industry as the Soviet Union fell; it’s got interviews with authors, publishers, and critics, close readings and bestseller stats—all while showing how capitalism emptied out Russian culture and how it might be coming for us next.
I’m honestly scared after yesterday. I don’t see how democracy survives the next four years. But it’s more than that. We have a retributive police state with a self-fashioned messiah at its head. This is so obviously terrifying that the cheers behind the executive actions yesterday just ring evil.