In Search of the Magical Flow: Magic and Market in Contemporary Russia
Author(s)
Lindquist, Galina
Abstract
The paper considers business magic in Russia, here seen as an instrumental practice guided by the same cultural logic that structures other areas of social life, notably commercial activities. It discusses the notions of risk and trust and argues that they can not be neatly applied to the world of commerce in Russia. Based on the ethnography of the life of a small trader in Moscow, and of her use of magic in her ,everyday activities, the paper argues that the notions more relevant to the world of Russian commerce are danger and hope. Magic is analyzed as a psychosocial mechanism of helping people to live with danger and fostering hope. These notions are seen as locally relevant cultural alternatives to “risk” and “trust.”
