Abstract
There was a time, improbable though it may now seem, when it was not considered inherently dubious for academics to work with or for the government. For several decades in the mid-20th century, Soviet studies -- a field born of America's post-World War II desire to understand its ally-turned-enemy -- enjoyed a wealth of government funding and scholarly attention. In a new book, Know Your Enemy: The Rise and Fall of America's Soviet Experts, David C. Engerman explains how Soviet Studies rose so rapidly, and why its decline began well before the fall of the Soviet Union. Engerman, who is associate professor of history at Brandeis University, responded via e-mail to questions about the book.