258. RIP!! Peter Duncan

Peter Duncan, the British author and an expert on Russian politics and culture, passed away last Sunday. He is known for his two books – Soviet Union and India and Russian Messianism: Third Rome, Revolution, Communism and After. 

The Soviet Union and India, published in 1989, was well received, which proves Duncan’s encyclopedic knowledge of contemporary Russian politics. Not to forget that just two years later, in 1991, an event happened that shook the world and changed its very map.

Russian Messianism examines the complexities of Russian messianism, both in its entirety and in its interaction with Communism. Peter Duncan considers its Orthodox roots and focuses on Russia's geopolitical experience and situation to explain the phenomenon's endurance. 

Russian Messianism was published in 2000, so it narrates what readers really want to know about the USSR and Russia. The final chapter, Post-Soviet Russia, explores how Russian messianism reemerged as a significant force within the Communist Party of the Russian Federation after the Soviet Union's collapse. When the USSR dissolved on December 31, 1991, the Russian government initiated an economic shock therapy program on January 2, 1992, designed by the International Monetary Fund and Deputy Prime Minister Egor Gaidar. These reforms led to a rapid decline in economic output and a surge in inflation, reaching 2,000 percent in 1992. Living standards deteriorated, and poverty increased. And what happened in the following years? Wonderfully explained.

Duncan was also a member of the Editorial Board of the Slavonic and East European Review.

There are authors who change our perception and dispel our prejudices about themes, philosophies, and political discourse through their logical articulation, and Peter was one such author, at least for me, who had been a staunch communist. I find no other book that is written so objectively about Russia’s political history.

Having read both of his books at different times, I was deeply saddened to learn that Peter has passed away. Some days, the entire day feels gloomy, and today is one of those days for me.