This book draws a comparison between Western and Russian culture (especially theology, literature and art), and shows the connection between the observed differences in these fields and the expected differences in law, economics, and the political structure. It shows why privatization and a thriving market economy do not succeed in Russia and why it would take more than money to remedy the situation. It predicts that Russia's economic woes are destined to dominate the life of the country for many more years, unless Russian society undergoes a profound, and not necessarily welcome, cultural transformation.