Ideas about the end of history have long described the peculiarities of the world historical process. However, every time the «end of history» is declared, a new round of prosperous globalisation or «golden» years begin anew, for example World War I, the 9/11 disaster, the election of Trump, Putin’s «special operation», and the return of destructive and archaic ideologies. Sometimes it seems that a catastrophic period of post-history has arrived. The safety net of civilization — universal values and democratic institutions — keeps the world from taking the final step into the abyss of post-history. And this raises hopes that the end of history «in a good sense» is yet to come.
This edition is based on a course of lectures given by Andrei Kolesnikov, a senior researcher at the Carnegie Foundation, as part of the SCE Advanced Programme in 2021. It traces the history of the «ends of history», analysing the political, sociocultural, and attitudinal circumstances that have contributed to or prevented states and societies from developing normally or descending into barbarism for a time.