Specifika současné ruské diskuse o Sovětském svazu

• Authors: Zdeněk Bělonožník

Title variants

EN

Specifics of the Contemporary Russian Discussion on the Soviet Union

• Languages of publication: CS

Abstracts

EN

The aim of the article is to introduce contemporary Russian discussion on the USSR and Russia in broader political and publicist context. Both positive and negative interpretations of the Russian/Soviet history will be presented. The text does not pretend to provide exhaustive list of the particular “schools” and “movements” nor does it offer historical dynamics or institutional background of the discussion. The author rather intends to single out certain basic schemes and arguments that circulate in the discussions, place them in broader frames and anticipate their potential political consequences. Particularly, the text concentrates on various versions of the patriotic thinking that has been receiving broad popularity in today Russia. As the author is convinced, due familiarity with the contemporary Russian debate may help to better understand Russian internal as well as foreign policy nowadays: as it becomes clear, rise of patriotism in academia, society and politics are inseparable phenomena. Secondly, some of the arguments promoted by the contemporary Russian authors may enrich Western (non-Russian) sovietology and debate on socialist experiments as such. Last but not least, both content and form of the Russian academic discussion convincingly point at cultural conditionality of social and historical sciences. To some extent the discussion reminds perpetual Russian debate on national identity; cardinally new context in which it takes place however justifies attention paid to it.

Keywords

EN

Discussion on the USSR; Russian Character and Civilization; Myths on Russia; Patriotism; Russia and the West

Discipline

• HISTORY: HISTORY
• SOCIOLOGY: SOCIOLOGY
• POLITICAL_SCIENCES: POLITICAL SCIENCES

• Publisher: Charles University in Prague, Karolinum Press, Czech Republic
• Journal: Historická sociologie (Historical Sociology)
• Year: 2014
• Volume: 1
• Pages: 81-99

Contributors

author

Zdeněk Bělonožník

• Mezinárodní středisko pro rozvoj migrační politiky (ICMPD) (Czech Republic)