Book Discussion: Ambicoloniality and War: The Ukrainian-Russian Case, by Svitlana Biedarieva

Session Submission Type: Book Discussion Roundtable

Brief Description

This roundtable focuses on the discussion of the book "Ambicoloniality and War: The Ukrainian-Russian Case," by Svitlana Biedarieva. This new monograph introduces the concept of “ambicoloniality” to address the current situation in which Ukraine has become Russia's territory of obsession, while Russia, in its desire to occupy Ukraine, has paradoxically subjected itself to Ukraine’s symbolic dominance. Ambicoloniality represents a key departure from existing models, as the mutual influence of the two countries over centuries has been reciprocal across a shared border—unlike other empires that established their colonial power relations at a distance. The Ukrainian-Russian case differs significantly from the examples addressed by both postcolonial and decolonial theorists.
To examine the causes and consequences of this distinct process of colonial expansion, anti-colonial struggle, and decolonial release, the discussion centers on the book's investigation of the historical and cultural factors driving the growing divergence between the two states. The book explores the role of cultural hybridity in shaping political self-identification in both Ukraine and Russia and examines how this hybridity has manifested in society and culture—including art and literature—following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, up to 2023.

Sub Unit

• Anthropology, Cultural Studies

Chair

• George G. Grabowicz, Harvard U

Roundtable Speakers

• Svitlana Biedarieva, Independent Scholar

• Vitaly Chernetsky, U of Kansas

• Oksana Dovgopolova, Kyiv School of Economics (Ukraine)

• Oksana Lutsyshyna, Independent Writer, Translator, and Poet

• Epp Annus, Ohio State U / Tallinn U (Estonia)