Download or read book The Plow, the Hammer, and the Knout written by Arcadius Kahan and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1985-09 with total page 458 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The eighteenth century was crucial in Russian history, marking the nation's emergence from a preindustrial society and the onset of a modernization that would make Russia a great European, and eventually global, power. Kahan writes social history of this century to reflect that Russia accomplished this transformation through the coercive power of the state, and the strength and skills of its labor force.