Political Fiction and Political Reality in Contemporary Ukraine

This event brings together two Ukrainian authors whose professional experience spans economics, law and public administration. Joining us in Oxford following their participation in the London Book Fair, where they appeared as featured authors, they will reflect on how literature and personal testimony engage with questions of power, institutional reform and democratic responsibility in contemporary Ukraine.

Olena Duma is a lawyer and author with experience in public administration. She is the author of Armahedon dlia Koruptsiioneriv (Armageddon for Corrupt Officials), a reflective account of the institutional and legal challenges involved in combating corruption and managing state assets in a country undergoing war and structural transformation.

Oleksandr Savchenko is an economist and public intellectual with experience in monetary policy and financial governance in Ukraine. He is the author of the political novel Eskalatsiia. Bytva Prezydentiv (Escalation. The Battle of Presidents), which uses the device of memory loss during a presidential campaign to explore themes of leadership, political identity and the reconstruction of public trust in a society emerging from war.

Questions of the discussion:

• How does political fiction shape public understanding of leadership and responsibility in times of crisis?
• What institutional challenges confront states undergoing wartime and post-war transition?
• How can personal narrative contribute to debates on accountability and governance reform?
• Where is the boundary between literary imagination and lived administrative experience?

The event will be moderated and followed by an audience Q&A.

The views expressed by the speakers are their own.

Place: Balliol College, Gillis theatre, 5 pm

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Host or Publisher Ukrainian Culture Weeks - Oxford University Ukrainian Society