Russian character and features of the Russian mentality. Features of the Russian soul and Russian mentality

mentality mentality Russian people

The characterization of Russian culture in terms of its place in the dichotomy "East - West" is a rather difficult task, since, firstly, it occupies a middle position in relation to the geopolitical factor (which is taken into account by representatives of the so-called "geographical" or "climatic" determinism) ; secondly, the study of Russian civilization is just beginning (it is generally possible in relation to the national and cultural integrity that has already become, and in Russia self-identity and national identity are formed quite late in comparison with European cultures); thirdly, Russian culture is initially super-polyethnic in its composition (Slavic, Baltic, Finno-Ugric with a noticeable participation of Germanic, Turkic, North Caucasian ethnic substrates took part in its formation).

Russian culture began to stand out as a special type within the framework of Christian civilization in the 9th-11th centuries, at the beginning of the formation of the state in Eastern Slavs and their introduction to Orthodoxy. From the very beginning, Russian culture is formed on the basis of such cultural features as:

• autocratic form state power("patrimonial state");
• · Collective mentality;
• Subordination of society to the state;
• · Little economic freedom.

One of the most significant factors in the formation of Russian culture was Orthodoxy as a religious and moral landmark of spiritual culture. The Old Russian state was a confederation of independent states. Orthodoxy set a normative-value order common to Rus', the only symbolic form of expression of which was the Old Russian language. It "captured" all strata of society, but not the whole person. The result of this is a very superficial (formally-ceremonial) level of Christianization of the "silent majority", its ignorance in religious matters and a naive social-utilitarian interpretation of the foundations of dogma. Therefore, we can talk about a special type of Russian mass Orthodoxy - formal, closely "fused" with pagan mysticism and practice, which allowed N. A. Berdyaev to call it "Orthodoxy without Christianity."

Middleness in relation to the Western and Eastern types of cultures is perhaps one of the leading characteristics of Russian culture, since the "Western" and "Eastern" features in the Russian mentality do not strictly contradict each other, but rather combine and complement each other. So, for example, Christian values ​​are borrowed by Russia as value system cultures of the West, but in the "eastern" version they are inherited from Byzantium, and the Russian Church since the 15th century has been dependent on the Patriarch of Constantinople. Also in the types of socio-political structure: Rus' "tried on" both the eastern and western models, and the centers of the Ancient

If we try to formulate exactly which features of the Russian mentality can be characterized as clearly Western, and which as Eastern, then we can represent them as follows:

Western features:

• · Christian values;
• the urban character of culture, which determines the whole society;
• · military-democratic genesis of state power;
• · the absence of the syndrome of total slavery in relations of the "individual-state" type.

Eastern features:

• • lack of private property in the European sense;
• · the dominance of the principle, in which power gives rise to property;
• autonomy of communities in relation to the state;
• The evolutionary nature of development.

As for the so-called "paths" of Russian culture, its cultural history has a completely unique specificity. Our history is not as “eternally lasting”, rather aimed at stagnation, any maintenance of stability, balance and, if possible, immutability, as in the East, turned into eternity, and, at the same time, not as gradually progressive as in the West, going along the path of qualitative and extensive development. It is as if we are playing, shuffling Eastern and Western types of structuring historical time in our history. Russian culture then falls into some kind of hibernation, in which it even “misses” highlights European history of the spirit (so we did not survive Antiquity, which gave European and Eastern cultures such a powerful cultural innovation (which K. Jaspers called the "axis" of world history) as a transition from the mythological type of thinking to the rational development of the world, to the emergence of philosophy - we began to form its ethno-cultural "self" immediately in the Middle Ages; the Renaissance type of personality did not take shape in Russian culture, since we also "stepped over" through the Renaissance, stepping immediately into a good and strong Enlightenment), it is concentrated and no one knows where, drawing strength, is included in some kind of “explosion”, whether it is an external war, an internal revolution, or something like “perestroika” or other reforms. This is one more specific trait Russian mentality - polarity. Therefore, life in ordinary language is a zebra, therefore “either pan - or disappeared”, “who is not with us is against us”, “from rags to riches” ... That is, a Russian person does not tolerate intermediate states, loves to “walk along blade of a knife and cut your bare soul into blood. Therefore, he feels great and adapts in crisis, milestone, turning points at the collective and even the state level. This affects our ways of waging wars and our ability to resist an external enemy. So at the individual level, no one, probably like a Russian person, knows how to put up with life circumstances, with fate (or even fate), and if fate itself does not present any tricks and trials, then a Russian person “helps” it, provokes it. It is no coincidence that all over the world the game with death, when a person himself “pulls her by the mustache”, is called “Russian roulette”. This is one of the heterostereotypes of a Russian person in many other national cultures Oh.

One can also note the accentuated binarity as a characteristic feature of Russian culture, where, in a completely unique and paradoxical way, such oppositions as “collectivism - personality” “coexist”; "activity - passivity"; "borrowing - originality"; "development - stability"; "deconstruction - construction"; uniqueism is universalism.

The results of modern ethnopsychological research record a clash in the minds of Russian people of conflicting attitudes and behavioral stereotypes. So there are five main behavioral orientations:

• Collectivism (hospitality, mutual assistance, generosity, gullibility, etc.);
• · on spiritual values ​​(justice, conscientiousness, wisdom, talent, etc.);
• · on power (respect for rank, creation of idols, controllability, etc.);
• · for a better future (hope for "maybe", irresponsibility, carelessness, impracticality, self-doubt, etc.);
• for a quick decision life problems(habit of rush work, daring; heroism, high working capacity, etc.).

One of the central features of the Russian mentality is the ideal of obedience and repentance in Christianity (rather than physical work as an obligatory prerequisite for “smart doing”, similar to the Western Christian commandment “pray and work”, which, according to M. Weber, was one of the essential prerequisites for the formation of capitalism in Western Europe after the Reformation). Hence, Russians have such a heightened sense of guilt and conscience as the ability of a person to exercise moral self-control. It is savored by Russian literature with a special masochistic taste and is also one of the most common stereotypes.

Russian culture is characterized by a special ethnocentrism and messianism, which are an important part of Russian image thinking. This sensitively captures and expresses the language, ironically and exaggerating these properties of our mentality (“Russia is the birthplace of elephants”; or in one of the modern commercials: “It was a long time ago, when everyone was still Jews, and only the Romans were Russian”) . We are also largely inclined towards traditionalism, which justifies attempts to attribute Russian culture to the East. This is an all-encompassing traditionalism of thinking - a force realized by members of society, which does not consist in the individual and its intrinsic value, as in the culture of the West, but in the crowd, in the mass. Hence our desire for collective forms - catholicity in Orthodoxy, “hey, pile on, men”, “with the whole world, with all the people”, “Get up, huge country”, this is a rush, collective creativity in any spheres of cultural life. Traditionalism is expressed in "decency and orderliness", in the everyday and personal life of a Russian person, in the presence of rigid canons in literature and art, as well as in special treatment to time - in an appeal to the past or a very distant future (A.P. Chekhov: “A Russian person loves to remember, but not to live”). One of the sides of our traditionalism is monumentalism - a penchant for grandiose forms of self-expression and self-affirmation. Despite its openness to any intercultural contacts and borrowings, Russian culture is largely introvertive. Open to external influences, it is not susceptible to them due to the cultural immunity developed over the centuries and the “suspicious” attitude towards other, alien cultures. This is well illustrated by our particular way of reforming. For example, Peter's "Westernization" in terms of goals and form became the deepest "anti-Westernization" in essence, and the "revolutionary" and Westernizer Peter I turned out to be a guardian and traditionalist.

Introduction

Important factor, which influences the culture of a particular country, is the mentality of the bearers of this culture that has been formed over the centuries. mentality from latin mens(mentis) - mind, thinking, way of thinking, mental warehouse, reason, mental development. This term denotes a set of habits and beliefs, a way of thinking characteristic of a particular community. The mentality is easier to describe with some key concepts than to give a precise definition.

It is necessary to distinguish between the concepts of "mentality" and "mentality". Only partially these words are synonyms. The term "mentality" expresses a specific, historical quality, the variability of mentality (a system of some relatively stable characteristics), the so-called. mental core, manifested in the language, in the national character, in folklore, in politics, in art.

In mentality, something is revealed that the historical epoch under study does not directly report; the epoch, as it were, against its own will, "blurs" about itself, about its secrets. At this level, it is possible to hear things that cannot be known at the level of conscious statements.

We learn about the mentality of a particular culture, first of all, from the deeds and writings of its representatives. The protection of national cultures becomes the most important task of society. Another, no less urgent task is not to impede cultural modernization, synthesis, and dialogue of cultures. Modern Russia and the emerging Russian mentality are rich and controversial material for cultural research, which is very relevant right now.

70 years old Soviet power left a deep and controversial imprint in the culture of our country - one of the deepest after the adoption of Christianity, which formed the spiritual basis of Russian culture for centuries. An analysis of this complex, in many respects tragic period in the history of Russia is important right now, when the USSR as a state has already gone down in history, and the remnants of the former, Soviet mentality have remained.

The main problem of the Soviet mentality is alienation from religious values. The ideology that dominated the country for seven decades was based on the materialistic concept of Marxism-Leninism. Spiritual development has deeper roots.

The main problem of the Soviet mentality is that it is based on human teaching, not divine. By educating a person as a conductor of the pleasures of earthly life, we, without suspecting it ourselves, are building the former, Soviet mentality. A Soviet person is a person far from freedom of thought and creative self-realization.

In my term paper, I try to show the characteristic features of the Russian mentality, as well as their transformation under the influence of Soviet ideology. The culture of modern Russia is a synthetic culture (a synthesis of both pre-revolutionary and Soviet experience with the liberal-rationalist values ​​of the West); it has tendencies for further creative development, to overcome those remnants of the Soviet mentality that prevent the Russian people in general and millions of individuals in particular from realizing their intellectual, creative and economic potential, to build a viable economic and political system based on democratic principles, incorporating both traditional and newest phenomena national and world culture.

Chapter 1. The origins of the Soviet mentality

1.1 Characteristic features of the Russian mentality

More V.O. Klyuchevsky revealed the connection of natural and climatic conditions with the features of the national character of a particular people. Russian thought was originally associated with the desire to understand nature. The formation of Rus' began on a territory covered with forests and steppes. The forest served as a reliable refuge from enemies, but was dangerous for people, the steppe formed the motive of space, but also carried the threat of wars and raids. Hence - the "rootless" of the Russian people.

The culture of Russia was formed under the influence of both the West (adoption of Christianity) and the East (in the XIII-XV centuries - the Tatar-Mongol yoke, then - the capture and development of the eastern territories). A.O. Boronoev and P.I. Smirnov believe that the national Russian character is based on service, altruistic activity (alternative activity, For-the-Other-activity), and the role of the “Other” can be played by a person, and God, and nature, and the country (serving “Holy Rus'” as God's purpose). A number of reasons contributed to this - the borderline position of Russia, the need to defend both from the west and from the east, the need for mutual assistance. This hindered the development of market relations, but developed religiosity and asceticism in the minds of the Russian people. This is where the demarcation took place (namely, a demarcation, and not a complete break) with the rationalistic, more egocentric worldview of the West.

1.1.1 Religiosity as a fundamental feature of the Russian mentality

The most striking feature of the Russian mentality noted by philosophers is religiosity. The religion and philosophy of all peoples established long before Christianity that mankind as a whole and each individual aspires to God. Christianity of the Byzantine model, if not immediately, but firmly laid down on the pagan basis of Slavic religiosity.

Christian religiosity is manifested in the search for absolute, perfect goodness, realizable only in the Kingdom of God. This spiritual search is based on two biblical commandments: love God more than yourself and your neighbor as yourself. According to Christian teaching, relative blessings, not based on a clear distinction between good and evil, do not lead to the Kingdom of God.

In the famous work of S. M. Solovyov "History of Russia from ancient times" one can find the texts of chronicles, official documents, reports of diplomats, commanders. All these documents are full of references to God, God's will. Princes usually took the monastic vows before they died. In the 18th century, when the ideas of the Enlightenment began to penetrate into Russia, the activities of Freemasons developed widely, seeking to deepen the understanding of the truths of Christianity through cultural and religious synthesis (Christianity, Judaism, medieval alchemy, the legacy of antiquity). In the 19th and early 20th centuries, religiosity was expressed in works of poetry, prose, drama, and religious philosophy.

A religious person seeks absolute goodness in freedom. Both Western (Byzantine) and Eastern (Arabic) sources testified to the love of freedom of the Slavs. This was reflected in Russian folklore (melodiousness, melodiousness of Russian fairy tales, songs, dances).

1.1.2 The desire for service and self-sacrifice as a national Russian trait

The inclination towards isolation, the development of complex plans, the ability for collectivism, self-sacrifice - these are the features of the Russian psychology. The affairs of the social whole are put above one's own business. Service turned out to be the most appropriate form of activity for the Russian mentality, and indeed life in general. For a Russian person, the value of individual life is negligible compared to the common value (family, community, Fatherland). Hence - the spirit of Russian sovereignty, the merger of the state and society. Orthodox humility gave birth in Russian people to sacrifice, asceticism, neglect of the values ​​of worldly comfort and well-being. However, humility does not mean inactivity; it presupposes a volitional act (feat, virtue).

The consequence of Christian humility is the spiritual warmth of Russians, a hospitable attitude towards foreigners, a sense of community, the need for disinterested communication. The Russian mentality is characterized not by egocentric incentives for self-affirmation, but by the desire for spiritual freedom. This desire in relation to management is also manifested in relation to material goods.

1.1.3 Attitude towards money and wealth

In no nation, perhaps, a negative attitude towards material well-being is not rooted as deeply as among the Russians. In Rus', in Russia, a wealthy person had to look for "excusing reasons" for his wealth. Hence the craving for charity, for patronage (remember the Morozovs, Mamontovs and other famous Russian merchant dynasties)

The focus on economic well-being turned out to be more characteristic of the Western mentality. It turned out to be both more stable and more competitive. With the beginning of the New Age in Europe, and then in America, the so-called. "middle class" - the social stratum of people with a stable financial position which, nevertheless, does not allow one to live without working (the “middle class” in Russia was only seriously discussed at the end of the last century). In the Russian character, the desire to cherish material wealth, respect for material values, respect for work, and responsibility for one's own destiny are not sufficiently developed.

1.1.4 Attitude towards work

On the attitude of Russians to work, there are two directly opposing opinions. Some observers consider Russians to be lazy due to centuries of everyday unsettledness, while others insist on industriousness. Oddly enough, there is no contradiction here. The Russian mentality is not characterized by love for work as such. For Russians, the goal of labor is important - not for themselves, but for high purpose(for the sake of saving the soul, for obedience, to the Motherland). At the same time, Russians tend to strive for self-expression in creativity. A difficult task, interesting work or problem is a good incentive for a Russian to intensive, often financially unprofitable work.

A component of the Russian mentality is a tendency to collective, artel work. Earnings are usually divided not by contribution to the result, but “by fairness”.

Russian entrepreneurship is also largely based on the Orthodox tradition. Neither the peasant nor the merchant aspired to wealth as the main goal of existence. The Orthodox tradition forbids the collection of interest (interest) from a neighbor and claims that only labor can be a source of wealth. At the heart of pre-revolutionary Russian entrepreneurship was the motive of serving: the tsar, the Fatherland (the early Stroganovs, Demidovs), God (the builders of monasteries and temples), the people (patrons and benefactors - see 1.1.3).

Among Russian entrepreneurs, paternalistic, “family” relations with hired personnel traditionally dominated, in any case, with a permanent part of it close to the owner (the same was in the relationship between landowners and serfs). Dating back to Domostroi (XVI century), they were ubiquitous back in late XIX century.

Traditionally, the Russian family economy was natural, only what could not be made independently was bought. Residents of cities - petty bourgeois, workers, merchants, whose main activity was not related to agriculture, still sought to have their own economy. Only in Russia did a special type of settlement appear - a city estate.

1.1.5 Relationship to the state

IN public life Russian freedom-loving is expressed in a penchant for anarchy, in a certain contempt for the state. This feature of the mentality influenced such thinkers as Mikhail Bakunin, Peter Kropotkin, Leo Tolstoy, Old Believer rumors and some modern religious associations.

Russian contempt for the state - contempt for the bourgeois focus on property, on earthly goods, to the so-called. "philistinism". This was alien to the European mentality even in the crisis era between the two world wars (let us recall, for example, the novel by H. Hesse “The Steppenwolf”, imbued with the spirit of escapism, where, nevertheless, the “petty-bourgeois” spirit is described with sympathy).

Unlike Western Europe, where states arose through conquest, statehood in Rus', according to historical sources, was established by the voluntary calling of the Varangian rulers by the people. The ruling classes lived by the "external" truth, creating external rules of life and resorting to coercive force in case of their violation. “Earth”, the people lived by the “inner”, Christian truth. Even the conquest of new territories went largely not at the expense of power, but at the expense of the population, who often fled from state persecution (Cossacks); the state overtook the pioneers only during the development of new lands. The formation of an absolute monarchy in Russia took place not only thanks to the efforts of the rulers, but also thanks to the support of the people. The years of war were more frequent than the years of peace. Service characteristic of the Russian mentality higher beginning prompted huge sections of the population (clergy, merchants, military) to subordinate their freedom to the state, as a necessary condition for curbing evil. The clergy were called to the same end. The church became an instrument of the fight against evil by moral means, and the state became a means of coercion.

Patriotism, natural love for the motherland, and national feeling, that is, love for the Russian people, were combined in the church into one inseparable whole. The Orthodox clergy became the stronghold of the Russian autocracy.

Politically, Russia remained an absolute monarchy, while in Europe full swing bourgeois revolutions were going on and constitutional orders were being established. At the same time, in public life, everyday democracy was more pronounced than in the West (dislike for the conventions of the nihilists of the sixties, greater freedom from church prescriptions than Catholics and Protestants).

Thus, the Russian mentality combines diverse and even opposite properties and ways of behavior. N. Berdyaev expressively emphasized this feature of the Russian people: “Two opposite principles formed the basis of the formation of the Russian soul: the natural, pagan Dionysian element and ascetic monastic Orthodoxy. One can discover opposite properties in the Russian people: despotism, hypertrophy of the state and anarchism, liberty; cruelty, propensity to violence and kindness, humanity, gentleness; ritual belief and the search for truth; individualism, heightened consciousness of the individual and impersonal collectivism; nationalism, self-praise and universalism, all-humanity; eschatologically messianic religiosity and outward piety; the search for God and militant atheism; humility and arrogance; slavery and rebellion."

Getting higher education at universities and technological institutes was not a privilege of rich people in Russia. Russian everyday democracy contributed to the abundance of scholarships and assistance to students from societies at universities. Therefore, the Russian intelligentsia was non-class and non-class, heterogeneous. At the beginning of the 20th century, Russia had a chance to develop its own constitutional order, the foundations of a rule of law state (perhaps with a monarchical form of government, perhaps with a republican one) and civil society, if not for the First World War and the Bolshevik coup. However, after October 1917, and especially after Stalin came to power, the development of the country, and with it the development of mentality, took a different path.

1.2 From the Russian mentality to the Soviet one

In the early years of Soviet power, education younger generation was focused on the development of the individual, the education of the "new man". Subsequently, the Bolshevik government took the opposite path, believing that in a totalitarian state it was more important to subordinate the individual to the collective.

The Soviet mentality was by no means formed only on Marxist-Leninist foundations, but in many respects - on the basis of the Christian mentality of the Russian people. The attitude to work, to material wealth, to statehood has remained the same over the years.

Just as the Russian peasant owner worked hard from dawn to dusk, so did the Soviet worker and the collective farmer quickly and on time carry out plans and orders. The tradition of the Russian city estate (see 1.1.4) resulted in a special, nowhere else found movement of gardeners, which originated in Soviet time and had no economic roots. Patriarchal relations in production (albeit in a somewhat distorted form) were still encountered in Soviet times at enterprises headed by talented Russian directors.

The Soviet slogan “from each according to his ability, to each according to his needs” also has Christian roots, leading from the principle of separation. wealth"by justice". The primordially Russian property not to strive for wealth, for profit by any means migrated into the Soviet consciousness.

The attitude towards the state continued to be twofold. The Soviet era is characterized by such phenomena as the personality cult of the leader (Lenin, Stalin, Brezhnev - under Khrushchev this was less evident), exaggeration of the role of the party in public life. At the same time, the “unofficial”, everyday attitude towards state power was less serious, more ironic, often quite condescending (“political” anecdotes, cartoons of the Brezhnev era).

The fundamental link in the transition from the Russian mentality to the Soviet one was a change in attitude towards religion. It was believed that the establishment of communist ideology leads to the overcoming of religious consciousness and the establishment of atheism. The policy of the state towards the church changed at different stages Soviet history from attempts to cooperate in the first months after the October Revolution, to the exclusion and restriction of church activities, the destruction of churches in the 30s. The Bolsheviks initially did not seek conflict with the church, but the decrees of the Soviet government on the separation of the church from the state and the school from the church and the transition to Gregorian calendar provoked the condemnation of Patriarch Tikhon. This leads to conflict; the church is declared a stronghold of the counter-revolution. The Soviet government is trying to win over a part of the clergy to its side and at the same time is striving to liquidate the Moscow Patriarchate. By the end of the 1920s, the Bolsheviks managed to ensure a split in the church and intensify the persecution of those who were not ready to cooperate.

During the Great Patriotic War Stalin not only removes restrictions on the activities of the Orthodox clergy, but also returns part of the churches, monasteries and helps to restore the Moscow Patriarchate. Under Khrushchev, on the contrary, the authority of science is strengthened and atheism is declared again. During the Brezhnev years, the activities of the Russian Orthodox Church, although under the strict control of the party and the KGB, were nevertheless encouraged and supported, and anti-religious campaigns were directed primarily against sectarians, which was approved by the highest church officials. Nevertheless, religious traditions countries were lost; a significant part of the clergy was either repressed or emigrated. This happened not only with Orthodoxy. In the 30-40s, entire nations were destroyed along with their beliefs, with their temples, rituals, and customs.

Despite the fact that in the USSR it became outdated and sometimes shameful to be a believer, the remnants of religion were preserved in the form of numerous signs and superstitions, which became another integral feature of the Soviet mentality. Soviet era did not liquidate all forms of mass religious consciousness, but forced them out of the framework of traditional norms into the realm of everyday mysticism. The level of religious culture of the population has significantly decreased; state ideology took the place of religion.

The predominance of the value of an idea over value human life, the propensity for asceticism was also characteristic of the pre-revolutionary mentality. Soviet propaganda transformed this idea by removing Christian overtones from it. It has become righteous to sacrifice oneself not in the name of God, but for the sake of the triumph of the ideology of communism, for the sake of future generations. This attitude remained in the mentality of several formations of Soviet people. The loss of the religious heritage changed the attitude to morality, to morality, led to the decline of legal culture. It has become natural for a Soviet person to strive for his goal, not shunning any means.

The cultural potential of pre-revolutionary Russia was lost not only because of the persecution of the clergy and the systematic destruction of the "reactionary" remnants of Christianity in the mentality of the people. The secular culture of Russian society was also lost: the flower of the scientific and creative intelligentsia, the traditions of merchants, entrepreneurship, peasant management (a tragic consequence of collectivization and "dispossession"), jurisprudence, government controlled. The formation of the Soviet mentality took place in the conditions of a cultural crisis, which was hushed up by the official ideology. The continuity of generations and traditions was broken, which affected the seven decades of building socialism and continues to affect modern, capitalist Russia.

Chapter 2. Characteristic features of the Soviet mentality

As already mentioned in the previous chapter, the Soviet mentality, although it contained many common Russian features, nevertheless, differed very significantly from the pre-revolutionary one. The period of socialism led to the formation of a contradictory mentality of the "Soviet man". This chapter will discuss its characteristic features that developed during the years of the Soviet regime in our country.

2.1 Citizen feeling of a superpower

After the start of the Cold War, the world became bipolar. The main world confrontation was the confrontation between two systems - socialism and capitalism, two world powers - the USA and the USSR. New role countries in the world community has also affected the minds of people.

The main thrust of Soviet propaganda was the conviction of the decline of capitalism, the "decay" of Western society and the advanced position of the Soviet Union. This applied not only to politics, economics, military industry, influence in the world, the development of new territories and space, but also moral values, artistic culture, sports achievements. The roots of anti-American sentiments still prevalent in Russian society date back precisely to the times of the Cold War.

By opposing itself to the "capitalist" world of the West, the USSR found itself in cultural isolation. Sometimes the contradictory processes that took place in Western culture (the aggravation of the political struggle, youth movements, the growth of protest moods) did not receive a sufficient response in the culture of our country. Interest in Western culture, literature far from the principles of socialist realism, non-Marxist-Leninist philosophy, Western music of the twentieth century (“Today he plays jazz, and tomorrow he will sell his Motherland; today he plays rock, and tomorrow he will receive a term”) if not suppressed, it was not encouraged by society. Even in the "fraternal" socialist countries of Eastern Europe this phenomenon was not as widespread as in the Soviet Union. Censorship in Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland was not prohibitive, but permissive. Synthetic phenomena in culture went underground; many of them were talked about only when they themselves became the property of Soviet history.

It was officially believed that all the processes that are taking place in America and Europe (economic crises, unemployment, the growth of crime, the moral decay of society) only lead to the collapse of the capitalist system of values, while this does not exist under socialism. In practice, it turned out that similar phenomena in Soviet society were simply hushed up, and people were not ready for the crisis of socialism during the years of Brezhnev's "stagnation", for the realization of the utopian nature of the communist goal, the discrepancy between propaganda and the real situation in the country and the world.

An important attitude in the mentality of the Soviet people was confidence in tomorrow, in the future of both his family, future generations, and the whole country. Modern supporters of the communist ideology note this quality, lost by the modern Russian mentality, as unambiguously positive. At the same time, it was precisely this false confidence that prevented millions of Soviet citizens from adjusting to the social changes of recent decades.

2.2 Constructing the image of the enemy

The Soviet mentality was characterized by an unambiguous division of those around them into “us” and “them”. Anyone who did not fit into the system of values ​​imposed "from above", from the outside, could become an "outsider". The image of the enemy (the enemy of the country, society, and with it the ordinary Soviet citizen) was constructed by official propaganda.

As the years passed, the circle of forces "hostile" to Soviet society only expanded. At the dawn of the revolution, the opponents were all those who did not accept new order, a new way of life. With the beginning of Stalin's rule, with the intensification of repressions, the struggle for power, inner-party contradictions, this circle was replenished by representatives of the ruling circles, the official ideology, who tried to resist the dictatorship. During the years of Khrushchev's "thaw", when the party set out to expose Stalin's personality cult, public opinion condemned adherents of the old ideological clichés. In the Brezhnev era, the totalitarian regime began to take on authoritarian features, and those who did not obey authority, did not adapt to the majority, openly expressed their own opinion, expressed sympathy both for the West and for the remnants of the pre-revolutionary mentality, became “enemies”. The attitude towards supporters of changes in art, science, social thought, adherents of one religion or another, people involved in artistic creativity(both professionals and amateurs). Although the methods of combating dissent were not as openly cruel as under Stalin, the fates of many people were broken in prisons and psychiatric hospitals.

Even among the creative intelligentsia, always trying to resist stereotypes, hostile images were constructed. The division into “friends” and “strangers”, people of the “party” and “philistines” worked. Contempt for the "philistines", for the "soviet" as the antipodes of the representatives of "their own circle" did not go as far as a complete denial of the values ​​of Soviet society, as happened from time to time in the West; in practice, intellectual "freethinking" was primarily declarative. The "protest" attitudes of the Soviet era were thoroughly imbued with the spirit of conformism, easily explained by the desire of people to survive in the bowels of the system and build their own system on its basis. The same desire was observed in the youth movements of the perestroika years; it is observed even today. This is partly why the controversial, but undoubtedly rich countercultural heritage of the 50s-70s in Europe and America received a powerful echo in the USSR only in the late 70s and early 80s, and many phenomena became known in Russia only in the 90s.

Throughout the entire period of influence of socialism in the world, the establishment of communist ideology was very uneven. A large number of "doubters" who were ready to weaken the influence of the USSR on the politics, culture, mentality of their country remained in the Baltic republics, which were annexed to the Soviet Union only during the Second World War, in the countries of Eastern Europe, where the formation of socialism took place under the sign of the victory of the USSR over fascism . This doubt had to be paid with considerable blood, which explains the dislike for the Russians of the inhabitants of the current independent states - Russia's western neighbors. No matter how hard the Poles, Hungarians, Czechs, Latvians, Estonians try to disown the socialist past, a new image of the enemy in the face of modern Russia, the desire to shift responsibility for their past to the entire Russian people can also be regarded as a relic of the Soviet mentality.

In the everyday life of Soviet people, representatives of any minorities could fall under the image of an “enemy”: national (I’ll tell you more about “domestic” xenophobia), religious, sexual (the criminal prosecution of homosexuals that began in the Stalin years caused a wave of homophobia that does not fade in modern Russia), and just those who stood out too much from the crowd, "white crows". The feeling of enmity was instilled from childhood (remember the film "Scarecrow") - to people gifted with this or that skill, talent, to those who studied, worked better or worse than most, were poorer or richer, differed in the manner of dressing, holding on, think.

The Cold War, anti-American propaganda constructed a hostile image of America. Young people's interest in the culture of the West began during the Khrushchev "thaw" - just when Europe and the United States were seized by protest moods. The Soviet intelligentsia discovered the works of writers of the "lost generation" - Ernest Hemingway, Richard Aldington, Francis Scott Fitzgerald, novels and short stories by contemporary authors - Jerome David Salinger, John Updike, Jack Kerouac were published in periodicals. However, all this was presented under a certain ideological angle; a point of view, often of an anti-American character, was imposed on the reader, which did not correspond to the worldview of the writers themselves. In the late 60s and throughout the 70s, interest in the West did not fall, but, on the contrary, increased. Images gleaned from books, from Eastern European periodicals (censorship in the "countries of victorious socialism" was not as strict as in the Soviet Union), from the impressions of the military, sailors, diplomats who were abroad, differed significantly from those propagated. The fascination with the culture of Europe and America was, first of all, characteristic of young intellectuals, who less strongly absorbed ideological attitudes and were critical of them. There was a gap between the generation of "fathers", for whom the dominant ideology was undeniable, and the generation of "children", who tried, if not completely to deny the generally accepted ideals, then at least critically and creatively rethink them. Yes, and in the youth environment, "dandies", "informals", subject to the "pernicious influence of the West", found their opponents among party and Komsomol activists. Such stamps in the minds of people (including the carriers of "protest" attitudes themselves) did not disappear even at the turn of the millennium.

Scientific and technological progress, the development of the natural sciences, the military-industrial complex led to another division of society - into "physicists" and "lyricists". The Soviet consciousness adopted an attitude to the priority of technical knowledge over the humanities. Representatives of creative professions and humanities; they were treated as "loafers", "people without education". Even in the 1990s, when with the development information technologies and relations between countries, humanitarian knowledge turned out to be more and more in demand, many professionals were unable to overcome the stereotype left over from Soviet times.

The spirit of hostility permeated the entire Soviet society. An atmosphere of fear and suspicion lay at the heart of the socialist order; she was the cause of his downfall. This relic of the Soviet mentality is dangerous in today's Russian society, which is even more heterogeneous than the Soviet one. It is dangerous because anyone can fall under the image of the enemy - by skin color or political convictions, by demeanor, by religious or aesthetic preferences. The outward attitude towards tolerance does not always turn into tolerance in everyday life, more often the other way around. To overcome hostility, hostile attitudes in the mind, it will take a lot of time.

After the Great Patriotic War, the Soviet Union positioned itself as the main winner of fascism. Hence - the declaration of friendship between peoples, internationalism as a counterweight to "bourgeois" nationalism, neo-fascism.

The USSR was a multinational state. The vast territory of the former Russian Empire was not fully developed; the peoples who inhabited it were different levels development. Since Stalin's times, official propaganda testified to the increase in the cultural level of the peoples of the Far North, the Far East, Central Asia, the Caucasus, the development of education, writing, and literature in the union republics. This phenomenon had great consequences, and by no means only positive ones. The national-cultural autonomies that existed in tsarist Russia were destroyed; in the Stalin years, entire peoples were deported (Crimean Tatars, Volga Germans). The traditional way of life of the peoples of the North and Siberia was destroyed by outside interference, which led to the death of a huge number of people, the growth of drunkenness, which was not characteristic of these peoples before, the loss of traditional culture, beliefs, folklore, crafts. Just as Nazism used neo-paganism based on ancient Germanic and Scandinavian religion and magic as one of its foundations, so did Stalinism Far North, in Siberia, on Far East largely established by paganism and shamanism.

The high-profile processes of the Stalinist years (first internal repressions, and then the notorious "doctors' case"), the dissatisfaction of the Soviet leadership with the policies of the young state of Israel during Brezhnev's rule led to the spread of anti-Semitism in society. Despite the fact that among the first revolutionaries, among the members of the Bolshevik party there were many representatives of the Jewish people (which is easily explained by Jewish pogroms, the growth of Black Hundred sentiments at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries), for the "ordinary Soviet person" the word "Jew" became abusive. Belonging to a particular nationality was associated in the mentality with certain qualities, character traits, often negative, “hostile” to Soviet society (stinginess, propensity for gain, selfishness). This is despite the fact that it was the Jewish people who showed the Russian and Soviet society a whole galaxy of figures of science and artistic culture. Many people hid their origin, changing their surnames to Russians, hushing up their ancestry.

"Everyday" xenophobia, rooted in the Soviet mentality, also affected people from the Caucasus and Central Asia. We can safely say that the growth of such sentiments in modern Russia, the constant armed conflicts in the southern territories of the former USSR are a consequence of the remnants of the Soviet consciousness. People from the south increasingly found themselves in territories with a predominance of the Russian population: some ended up in the RSFSR after the war and Stalin's deportations, others came to study at universities or work by distribution. Insufficient knowledge of the Russian language, different from the Central Russian attitude towards the family, towards a woman, towards an older person set her against southerners indigenous people. Hence the numerous jokes and jokes “About the Georgian”, “About Uzbeks”, the contemptuous names “Khachik”, “Churka”, “Chuchmek”, “Black Sea” unrevigentlyed by nationality.

Under the motto of internationalism, the Soviet Union welcomed the national liberation movements in the former European possessions in Asia and Africa, countries Latin America, established diplomatic relations with new states in the 50s, 60s, 70s. At the same time, the Soviet government supported dictatorial regimes, often established after the victory of liberation movements in these states, which cost the lives of thousands of people.

Natives of the countries of the "third world" came to study in Soviet universities. Along with their higher education, the “export of the revolution” took place, the imposition of Soviet values ​​on young national formations with an undeveloped mentality. The "export of the revolution" became the cause (albeit not the only one, but an important one) of the civilizational conflict at the turn of the 20th-21st centuries. The attitude towards foreigners within the Soviet Union continued to be wary, to the point of hostility.

The declared internationalism, the notorious "friendship of peoples" led, on the one hand, to the establishment of ties between the population of the whole country, and of the whole world, on the other hand, they left an indelible mark on the mentality and culture of the peoples of the USSR. And this trail did not always benefit the cultural level of the population. People broke away from their roots, forgot the traditions of their people - and at the same time remained "strangers" for others. National contradictions both in the post-Soviet space and around the world have become one of the main problems of the new millennium.

2.4 Collectivism

The communist ideology put the interests of the collective above the interests of the individual. The status of a Soviet citizen throughout his life largely depended on his belonging to certain groups, social formations - either obligatory (Octobers, pioneers) or desirable (Komsomol, party, trade unions).

Soviet schoolchildren - Octobrists, pioneers, Komsomol members - were inspired that relations within the team should be placed above family and friendly ones, that a comrade can be disliked because of some personal qualities, but one cannot refuse to help him. With the same attitude, the man went to adulthood. Here one can notice the legacy of the communal order traditional for Russia, echoes of the Christian mentality (“love thy neighbor”), though devoid of a religious component.

Despite the fact that the collective really strengthened the feeling of comradely responsibility, it also deprived the individual of the opportunity to develop within the individual framework. Membership in the Communist Party, public work in the Komsomol, trade union organization, service in the armed forces were encouraged both morally and materially, and increased the social status of a Soviet citizen. If a person isolated himself from the group or denied its interests, he inevitably became an outcast. Individualism, striving for personal improvement, refusal to follow generally accepted patterns, escapism¸ egocentrism were condemned by society. The team did not accept those who were noticeably different from the majority - in terms of their way of thinking, in terms of intellectual level, range of interests and communication. Bright individualities sometimes could not be fully realized, revealed in the depths of one or another cell of society.

When, with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the usual social patterns began to break down, people sometimes lacked the strength and experience to adapt to new conditions. The development of the Russian market, and with it the market system of values, contradicted the beliefs fixed in the minds of several generations, which led to a crisis of values ​​in modern Russia.

2.5 Anti-intellectualism

Contempt for intelligence has always played an important role in the Soviet mentality. The word "intellectual" was offensive throughout Stalin's reign. The Soviet leaders considered themselves entitled to impose their opinions on scientists, artists, and writers under pain of reprisals. During the years of Soviet power, many representatives of the intellectual stratum had to emigrate; many of those who remained in the USSR became victims of the totalitarian regime or "internal emigrants". Until now, key positions in Russian science and art are occupied by those who made their careers through political means.

Anti-intellectualism was the result of the imprint of the official ideology in the mentality of people. In the view of the Soviet layman, intellectually developed person was "ideologically unreliable". The Soviet “intellectual” gravitated toward values ​​alien to society that contradicted generally accepted ideas, was critical of the phenomena that took place in the country and the world, did not bow to the authorities, was interested in the culture of the capitalist West, and, therefore, could be dangerous.

Lack of complete freedom of speech in the country, censorship of media mass media led to the fact that the legacy of pre-revolutionary Russian culture, the culture of the Silver Age and the first years of Soviet power, the work of the victims of Stalinism, as well as a huge layer of Western art, philosophy (even of the Marxist persuasion) turned out to be unknown to the Soviet reader, listener, viewer. Many phenomena were talked about during the years of perestroika, but a significant part of them passed unnoticed by national culture.

The glorification of criminality, immorality, the reckoning of drunkenness, hooliganism, thoughtlessly applied physical strength to the personal achievements of a person, although not officially declared, but became hallmark Soviet mentality. Even for the artistic intelligentsia, it has become common to mock both their own value priorities and “philistine” stereotypes, and often this went beyond harmless joke. To be smarter, more educated than his surroundings became ashamed. The attraction to "thieves" romance, "everyday" alcoholism, disrespect for both morality and the rule of law has become a habit of the whole society, regardless of cultural and educational level. The decline in the cultural level of the Soviet people, hushed up for decades, made itself felt at the turn of the 80s and 90s, when everyone started talking about everything openly.

2.6 The desire to shift responsibility for one's destiny to the authorities

The totalitarian regime that had developed in the Soviet Union reached its peak in the 1930s and 1950s, later taking on authoritarian features. The political struggle within the one-party system was weakened, and the citizens were given the illusion of "stability", the steadfastness of power.

The low level of political culture, unfamiliarity with the mechanism of democratic elections led to the fact that an individual, an individual, could rarely make informed political decisions. As during the autocracy, the people had hope for a “good tsar,” so in Soviet times, people relied, first of all, on the authorities, and not on themselves. The main difference was that in pre-revolutionary Russia there was a tradition of tsarist, then imperial power; the Soviet regime did not develop such a tradition.

The Soviet mentality did not contain the desire to argue with the authorities, to rebel. In the 80s, this led to the fact that all reforms, as in XIX-XX centuries, occurred "from above". The country turned out to be unprepared neither for the mechanism of free democratic elections, nor for market changes in the economy. The masses were easily led to the slogans of populist politicians who promised to solve all their problems and fulfill all their aspirations. When promises were not kept in practice, new demagogues came with new programs, most often incompatible with the real situation in the country.

Here is a short list of features of the mentality that has developed in Soviet period and became an obstacle on the inconsistent path from socialism to capitalism, from dictatorship to democracy. The confusion of the 90s led to apparent stability at the beginning of the new century. The authority of a “solid” state power, a well-defined ideology was again designated, a new turn towards authoritarianism, and, possibly, a new totalitarian regime, was outlined. To avoid this, it is important to understand what features of modern Russian mentality which can help and which can hinder this process.

Chapter 3. Features of Russian and Russian mentality in overcoming Soviet stereotypes

3.1 At the turn of the century: from the Soviet mentality to the Russian

The main mistake of perestroika was an attempt to mechanically graft elements of Western culture onto Russian soil. The older generation of Soviet citizens lost confidence (even if often illusory) in the future, which was offered by the system of “developed socialism”, the younger generation sometimes thoughtlessly adopted new values, paying, first of all, attention to their external, image aspects, rather than internal content. . Nevertheless, at the end of the last century, there was a transition from the Soviet mentality to the modern Russian one.

The life of the people of post-communist Russia is individualized and less regulated "from above" than before (before perestroika and market reforms). Freedom of choice is assumed, and, consequently, both risk and responsibility. The right of every person to build his life independently is not only a right, but in many respects an obligation. Without a conscious choice of the present, subsequent success becomes impossible (which is fundamentally the opposite of the Soviet illusion of "belief in a brighter future").

From such an attitude it follows that modern Russians have a different attitude to money and wealth than the Soviet one. It became not shameful to work and earn money, but, on the contrary, it was prestigious. Material values ​​began to be perceived as a sign of strength (both physical and intellectual), success, luck. At the same time, the discussion of income and salaries is increasingly becoming a bad taste - as in America and Europe.

Here the influence of the Western, rationalistic mentality is great, but in the pre-revolutionary culture of Russia one can find the forerunner of this phenomenon. Both the Russian peasant and the Russian merchant were, first of all, owners, for whom material wealth meant glory, power and confidence (remember how painfully, at the cost of huge human sacrifices, collectivization and “dispossession” took place in the Stalin years).

It would be erroneous to say unequivocally that the only sign of a change in the post-Soviet mentality is a rethinking of the attitude to the material side of life to the detriment of the spiritual. As the attitude towards income changes, so does the attitude towards education. Without special knowledge and skills, it becomes increasingly difficult to achieve financial well-being, and Russian citizens of all ages and social strata are increasingly drawn to new knowledge. Graduates of higher and secondary specialized educational institutions of the Soviet era are re-educated both in Russia and abroad, mastering professions that are in demand in the conditions market economy.

The opinion that exists in the minds of many citizens of our country about the “lack of spirituality” of young people is by no means always justified. The stereotypes imposed by the media only partially reflect the processes taking place in real life. There are many more thinking people among young Russians than is commonly believed. For people born in the 70s-80s and even the early 90s, it is characteristic that no ideology has become mandatory for them. Thousands of young Russians in our time are in a political, religious, ethical and aesthetic search. And the preferences of peers, representatives of the same generation and even the same social stratum often differ to the extreme. Some, in search of a moral guide, turn to the Soviet past, feeling unrooted in modern society, others - to the origins of Russian pre-revolutionary culture, to Orthodoxy, some - to Russian nationalism and monarchism, others - to the values ​​of the West, fourth - to the religion and philosophy of the East. Freedom of choice is the freedom of religion, political preferences, and everyday values ​​of a person and society.

Another important change in the mentality of Russians, which affected primarily young people (to a lesser extent, older generations) - in relation to the intimate sphere, to nudity, to the discussion of details related to sexuality. This corresponds to the modern Western European standard of propriety.

On the one hand, in the minds of Russians, sexual relations have acquired the right to exist outside of family and, in general, outside of any spiritual sensations. On the other hand, among the educated part of the population, the attitude towards this sphere of life has become more rational.

E. Bashkirova in her article "Transformation of the Values ​​of a Democratic State" tries to reveal the structure and dynamics of value preferences in Russian society, based on empirical research data (data from two sociological surveys - 1995 and 1999 are presented). An analysis of the answers of Russians to questions about traditional, "universal" values ​​allows us to identify the following hierarchy of priorities (as their importance decreases):

family - 97% and 95% of all respondents in 1995 and 1999, respectively;

work - 84% (1995) and 83% (1999);

friends, acquaintances - 79% (1995) and 81% (1999);

free time - 71% (1995) and 68% (1999);

religion - 41% (1995) and 43% (1999);

politics - 28% (1995) and 38% (1999).

Immediately striking is the commitment of the population to traditional values ​​for any society (family, communication), the attitude towards which changes very little over the years. The priority of work as a source of income in an unstable market economy prone to frequent crises is also easily explained. At the same time, work is often also a way to implement intellectual and creativity person.

Somewhat unexpectedly, religion and politics are placed in the hierarchy of values: after all, in the course of Soviet history, atheism and "political literacy" were actively cultivated in the country. The Constitution of the Russian Federation guaranteed to every citizen the freedom to profess any religion independently or in community with others. The liberalization of legislation in this area led to the fact that in the late 80s and early 90s the number of religious associations in the country increased markedly. The separation of church and state was also legally fixed, and, therefore, the right to be outside of religion.

Since for many centuries the fate of the Russian people was closely connected with Orthodoxy, other religions (even other models of Christianity) do not easily take root in society. There are quite a few people who consider the Orthodox Church the sole custodian of national spiritual treasures. According to the All-Russian Center for Research public opinion 45 percent of Russians are Orthodox believers.

The ROC plays a significant role in the life of the country (suffice it to recall the widely discussed project with attempts to introduce lessons Orthodox culture), which sometimes negatively affects the relationship between representatives of different faiths. The current state of the church is reminiscent of the situation at the beginning of the 20th century: on the one hand, social self-isolation, on the other hand, close contact with the state apparatus.

To a large extent, the process of religious identification and religious enlightenment of ordinary Russians is complicated by the ubiquitous spread of pseudo-mystical religions and cults. New, sometimes frankly totalitarian doctrines in their meaning and direction, nevertheless, receive their social order.

The Orthodox clergy usually incite parishioners against various kinds of "heretic sectarians" and almost traitors to Russian traditions, among which Muslims, Buddhists, Jews, and even Christians of other branches are completely unfairly included.

On the other hand, religious minorities are also trying to keep their faith. The 1990s was a time of restoration not only of Orthodox churches that were closed and destroyed during the Stalin years, but also of churches, mosques, and synagogues. Religious communities are being created, religious schools and higher educational institutions are being opened.

Another phenomenon that began back in the 70s and 80s and continues to this day is the growing interest in the religion and philosophy of the East. This interest does not always take the form of a cheap hobby for mysticism. There are those who, having been brought up from childhood in the Christian tradition or in the spirit of Soviet-style atheism, consciously accept Buddhism or Hinduism, Judaism or Islam. This phenomenon did not become widespread; it is mostly common among young intellectuals. Nevertheless, the increase in the level of tolerance towards adherents of non-dominant confessions, the tendency to independently choose their religious affiliation is undoubtedly a progressive shift in the development of mentality.

Danger heightened attention to religion in general lies in the fact that certain political forces can play on this (there are enough examples: the so-called "Islamic extremism"; "Orthodox nationalism"; neo-paganism and occultism as a means of propagating right-wing ideas). Religious associations should not in words but in deeds be equal before the law and be minimally involved in the struggle of parties and movements.

The role of politics in the lives of citizens of our country is steadily increasing. With the collapse of the USSR, countless parties and movements entered the political arena, only a small part of which had a built-in program of action and enlisted sufficient support in society. Over the years, their number began to decline; more powerful forces formed the system of state power, smaller parties and movements either united or remained on the periphery of the political struggle.

Although the political system in Russia has so far become only a semblance of democratic models, the level of political consciousness of citizens has nevertheless increased somewhat due to the right to elect and be elected. In the past few years, there has even been a certain “fashion” for politics, especially for youth (the influence of the “orange” revolutions in the union republics, dissatisfaction with the political course of representatives of different, sometimes opposing, beliefs). In the media, ratings of young politicians are increasingly common - from 18 to 30 years old. Perhaps it is these forces that will influence the political development of Russia in the 21st century.

However, as follows from the results of the survey, personal interests still prevail over public ones. There are obvious consequences of the synthesis of the Western, native Russian and Soviet value systems, which nevertheless led to some democratization of the Russian mentality. Unfortunately, this does not happen everywhere. In the next section, I want to talk about the remnants of the Soviet mentality in the self-consciousness of the citizens of our country.

3.2 Remnants of the Soviet mentality in post-communist Russia

In the twentieth century, the Western world has gone far ahead in its development. Modern Russia one has to assimilate a foreign culture, foreign values, sometimes ignoring centuries-old traditions. The weakness of Russian liberalism is the belief in the universality, absoluteness, and objectivity of the laws of the development of society. In fact, this attitude is a Marxist position. Social laws are not absolute, but dependent on people, their national character, traditions, and culture.

Despite the fact that the vast majority of citizens changed behavioral attitudes rather quickly, the same thing could not happen so easily with values. Values ​​in Russia often contradict each other. In this regard, modern literature often talks about their crisis in Russian society. The wave of the pre-revolutionary Russian intelligentsia, which became decisive in the formation of the mentality of the Russian people turn XIX-XX centuries, either emigrated to the West or was destroyed by the Stalinist system. Freedom of creative realization 50 years later faced with the value disorientation of society. The ideals propagated were often either not credible or seemed unattainable.

Over the past 20 years, the Russians have opened up a much greater freedom of choice than in the seven decades of socialism. Unfortunately, the recognition of this fact often leads to the denial of the entire experience of the previous generation. The image of the “ordinary Soviet citizen” during the years of perestroika turned into one of the variants of the image of the enemy. This was especially pronounced in the second half of the 1980s. On the one hand, it was during this period that the rich heritage of the country, the history and fate of which was hushed up for half a century, was widely spoken about. On the other hand, the phenomena of Soviet culture often began to be thoughtlessly "thrown off the ship of history", instead of being subjected to rethinking and constructive criticism. This led to a gap between generations. Young people in the Soviet and post-Soviet space were not instilled from birth with respect for the family, for the elders. With the change in the values ​​of society, the older generation in the eyes of young people began to be perceived as the bearer of old, "Soviet", outdated views.

The self-critical, sometimes on the verge of self-abasement tone in which they spoke about the Soviet and Russian mentality persisted in Yeltsin's Russia. The first Chechen campaign caused a wave of anti-patriotism and defeatism.

Changes at the turn of the 80s-90s did not entail revolutionary changes in the mentality of the majority of Russians. The very imprint of the Soviet mentality in the mind of a Russian person turned out to be one of the deepest after the adoption of Christianity in Rus'. The years of perestroika can rather be perceived as another period of "thaw" in the minds of the people. The desire to defend the newfound freedom privacy from uninvited intrusions, including by the state, continues to be combined with a craving for authoritarianism, characteristic of the Russian mentality.

Mosaic representations, their fragmentation is clearly manifested in the political sphere. The general trend for all CIS countries is the strengthening of the influence of the executive branch. Here, such a feature of the Soviet mentality as the desire to shift responsibility for one's own destiny to the authorities was manifested. The citizens of Russia at the referendum in the spring of 1993, having failed to make a choice between a strong presidential and legislative power, on the one hand, sanctioned the coexistence of the leader and an independent parliament as elements of different cultures, on the other hand, they showed the inability to choose, characteristic of a Soviet person. There is a synthesis of Western and Soviet cultures. Another illustrative example is the results of a sociological survey conducted in Crimea. It turned out that various groups of the population, while supporting democratic values ​​(freedom of speech, press, equality of forms of ownership), at the same time believe that a leader like Lenin, Stalin, Andropov is needed to get the country out of the crisis, that is, they combine political ideals characteristic of the West with ideas about "strong hand" The current cultural situation is made up of disparate elements: Soviet culture as a system of ideas has disintegrated, but continues to exist in the form of separate fragments; representations characteristic of modern Western culture are actively spreading; the influence of the Russian-Orthodox or other national-religious mentality is increasing.

Since the mid 90s. the terms “Soviet mentality” and “Russian mentality” have become less and less synonymous. Although they still had some negative connotation, nevertheless, in the contexts in which they were used, there was a desire, on the one hand, to build bridges between Russia before 1917 and Russia after 1993, on the other hand, to rehabilitate the “simple Soviet person”. The search for cultural identity, which took place in this vein, led to a more balanced assessment of the Soviet period. national history. Increasingly, voices began to be heard asserting that “not everything was bad” with us. This, of course, has its own very sober grain. However, faith in authority (which lost its original, religious content in Soviet times) is still combined with distrust of liberal values ​​allegedly introduced from outside, to democratic institutions.

In the minds of many, nostalgia for the “superpower” coexists with the “image of the enemy” left over from Soviet times. The collapse of the Soviet empire, along with the aggravation of interethnic conflicts, led to the growth of nationalist sentiments in society - from moderate to openly fascist. Unfortunately, in recent years this has been happening rapidly and is felt especially sharply - only the objects of hatred are changing. The anti-Semitism of the era of stagnation was replaced by the anti-Islamic sentiments of the times of "wild capitalism". A huge percentage of people still have a negative attitude towards the United States and Americans, which was established during the years of the Cold War. The image of the enemy, supported by Soviet propaganda, only became more colorful in the 90s: these are representatives of other nationalities (Azerbaijanis, Chechens, Jews), and homosexuals, and the authorities, and the church. The series can be continued indefinitely.

With the appearance of ideological pluralism for 20 years, the state has not developed a political scale. The level of political and legal culture, which has remained low since Soviet times, is compensated by trust in power based on force. There has not yet been a force ready to resist extremism, especially right-wing extremism. Xenophobia, homophobia, religious fanaticism under the guise of "spiritual revival" resonate in the post-Soviet consciousness. "Antifascist", human rights movements are too heterogeneous in their social, ideological component; their slogans are often declarative (a relic of the Soviet mentality), and, unfortunately, their methods of struggle often differ little from those of their opponents.

A negative consequence of Gorbachev's reforms, when everything that was economically efficient was considered moral, was the criminalization of society and the state. Getting used to freedom and private initiative is accompanied by an unwillingness to take responsibility for the consequences own decisions.

A. Ovsyannikov in the article “The Sociology of the Catastrophe: What kind of Russia we carry in ourselves” cites data that speaks of the criminalization of the consciousness and behavior of people (in % of the respondents).

Now, at the beginning of the new millennium, the disrespect for the law left over from Soviet times leads to a high level of crime and the inability of citizens to defend their rights. This comes both from ignorance of official legislation, the legal framework, and from the instability of moral norms in the mentality of Russians.

Perestroika and the years of “wild” capitalism that followed it exposed all the problems that existed in the Soviet period and about which it was customary to remain silent. Mental, value gap between different formations, between different social strata led to a cultural crisis in the country. The intelligentsia rediscovered the pre-revolutionary and early Soviet, pre-Stalin cultural heritage of Russia, the culture of the Russian diaspora; the mass media started talking about the unofficial culture of the USSR, about the Soviet "underground". The works of the classics of Western literature of both the past centuries and the twentieth century were printed with might and main. At the same time, that part of world literature that was covered in books and periodicals in the USSR (literature of the socialist countries, countries of the “third world”, former Soviet republics) often ceased to be republished and remained forgotten.

The abolition of censorship led to the fact that it became possible to cover almost everything in the media, and far from always this “everything” turned out to be High Quality. The fall in the level of literacy of journalists, observers, publishers, blind copying of the Soviet popular culture(already often rather wretched) American samples (we are not talking about American pop culture as a whole, which is a heterogeneous, synthetic and, of course, interesting phenomenon, but about its most “commercial”, meaningless sides), the growing popularity of “tabloid » reports - all this was revealed to the Russians in recent decades.

This is only a cursory list of those real contradictions that do not allow us to unambiguously assess Russia's place in the modern world. It will take a lot of time and effort to overcome the entire set of problems associated with culture and mentality. However, modern Russian culture has not lost all the strength that will help the formation of a new mentality that does not contradict either the original Russian or Soviet, but still different from them.

3.3 Overcoming the Soviet mentality as an individual and social task

For the formation of qualitatively new values, it is necessary to rethink the centuries-old cultural experience of Russia. Understanding the values ​​of your country is an understanding not only of its present, but also of its past. To raise the cultural level of Russians, an interest in the history of their country and their people is important.

The study of history should be as free as possible from any ideology. Not a single historical event, not a single era should be evaluated unambiguously; everywhere you need to look for both positive and negative sides. Any point of view must be backed up historical facts, expert opinions. Without this, an objective assessment is impossible. historical events.

An important, key period in the history of the country was the period between two revolutions (1905-1917). With the restriction and the subsequent fall of the absolute monarchy, a semblance of political pluralism was formed in the country. The parties of the Social Revolutionaries, Cadets, Octobrists, the Menshevik faction for some time represented real political forces capable of resisting both the ruling, Black Hundred circles, and the Bolsheviks. The beginning of the twentieth century was not only the flourishing of social thought and artistic culture, but also the rise of legal culture, the development of jurisprudence, which is lacking in modern Russian society.

For the rehabilitation of this heritage in the culture and mentality of Russians, it is important to renew interest in the culture of the Russian diaspora. Despite the fact that a significant part of non-Bolshevik public figures emigrated, not wanting to cooperate with the new regime, the majority supported the Soviet Union and the anti-Hitler coalition during the Second World War. The rehabilitation of pre-revolutionary values, which began during the years of perestroika, should not be interrupted, but it should not be unambiguously anti-Soviet either. Frankly criminal acts must be condemned, regardless of the religious or ideological banner under which they were committed. The condemnation of the system as a whole (and, even more so, the “fight” against it) is not only biased, but also meaningless.

The borderline geopolitical position forces Russia to reckon with the values ​​of both the West and the East. It is necessary both to establish diplomatic relations with the closest neighbors and to develop the culture of small peoples within the country. A Russian should not be ashamed of his nationality or religion. The predominance of adherents of a certain religion (Orthodoxy) among believers, the centuries-old priority of Christian values ​​in the Russian mentality should not turn this religion into an official, state religion. Secondary and higher education, legislation, and business should be based on universal human values ​​and not unequivocally identified with any religion. Religious extremism is also unacceptable, regardless of what denomination it identifies with.

One cannot but reckon with Western values, whose influence on the Russian mentality has become noticeably more tangible over the past 20 years. It is also necessary to talk about Western culture, and contradictory phenomena must be studied objectively. An individual should be judged as a representative of his time and his culture; unequivocal rejection of, say, the American, Jewish or Islamic value system is criminal. Mass media have provided the opportunity for dialogue with the inhabitants of different parts of the world, and if possible, this dialogue should be conducted peacefully, whether it be personal correspondence, business cooperation or diplomatic negotiations.

Just as the rise of the Russian national idea above all others is unacceptable, it is also worth avoiding frankly Russophobic sentiments. It is important to cultivate, if not love, then at least respect for certain representatives of your country, your culture - contemporaries or prominent personalities from the past.

Unfortunately, in recent years there has again been a trend towards the suppression of ideological pluralism. Modern mode in Russia, proclaimed democratic according to the Constitution, is in fact authoritarian. There are fewer and fewer real political forces ready to participate in the struggle for power. Under the guise of fighting extremism, political opposition is increasingly suppressed, while the criminal acts of extremists remain unpunished. This is fraught with either the establishment of a new dictatorship or another sharp change in political course. This should be remembered by everyone who is somehow connected with politics. It remains to be hoped that the current representatives of power, politicians of the "Soviet" hardening will be replaced by those for whom this will not be the fulfillment of some false obligations, but a full-fledged profession.

However, the spiritual factors underlying the synthetic Russian mentality should be placed higher than political and economic ones. The introduction of elements of the Western worldview, which turned out to be more viable in a democracy and a market economy, is inevitable. Russia is connected with the West through a system of Christian values. The roots of the Russian mentality are in Byzantine Orthodoxy, while the Western one is in Protestant ethics. The formation of two value systems took place in parallel; the Soviet period suspended this process. Now that collapsed iron curtain”, Russia needs a harmonious interaction between the primordial foundations of its own culture and the best practices of other countries.

Conclusion

At the turn of the century, Russia is again at a crossroads, trying to disengage from the countries of Europe and the United States, whose experience had to be adopted starting from the mid-80s. Despite the contradictory consequences of such borrowing, this experience should not be unambiguously denied; rather, it is useful to rethink all gains and losses.

In the Marxist system of values, culture was only a superstructure; the basis of any socio-economic formation was considered the type of management. The tragic events throughout the 20th century - wars, revolutions, the death of a huge number of people - proved that it is the cultural characteristics that determine the activities of the country, the people.

The study of cultures, the synthesis of cultures, attempts to understand someone else's value system - these are the steps towards a multipolar world in which Russia can and must take its place. Raising the cultural level of society is unthinkable without raising the cultural level of individual individuals. Values ​​focused on the development of the individual should become dominant in society. No idea should cost more than a human life; this is the overcoming of one of the negative, most destructive aspects of the Soviet mentality.

I would like to hope that the development of Russia in the new century will still follow the path of democracy. The "firm hand" of state power will undoubtedly play its role. It is important that a competent politician is at the head of the state, and that there are those around him who could challenge his point of view, offer their own alternatives to the political, economic, cultural development of the country. It is important that the representatives of the authorities could be supported by the population through the mechanism of free elections. But the establishment of a new order will still require a considerable period of time, during which Russia must try to realize its place in the past, present and near future.

Bibliography

1. Bashkirova E. Transformation of the values ​​of a democratic state / E. Bashkirova // World of Russia. - 1999. - No. 4

2. Berdyaev N.A. Russian idea / N. Berdyaev. – M.: Midgard, 2005. – 834 p.

3. Boronoev A.O. Russia and the Russians. The nature of the people and the fate of the country / A. O. Boronoev, P.I. Smirnov. - St. Petersburg, 2001. - 252 p.

4. Dyakonov B.P. How common sense fights in the Soviet mentality / B.P. Dyakonov // Business quarter. - 2003 - No. 35

5. Zenkovsky V.V. Russian thinkers and Europe // In search of their own way: Russia between Europe and Asia. - M., 1997

6. Ilyin I. A. About Russian nationalism / I. A. Ilyin. - M.: Russian Fund of Culture, 2002. - 152 p.

7. Karsavin L.P. Fundamentals of medieval religiosity in the XII-XIII centuries. / L.P. Karsavin - St. Petersburg, 1997. – 341 p.

8. Ovsyannikov A.A. Sociology of catastrophe: what kind of Russia we carry in ourselves / A.A. Ovsyannikov // World of Russia. - 2000. - No. 1.

9. Philosophical principles of integral knowledge// Solovyov V . C. Op. in 2 vols. - T. 2, M., 1988

10. Fedotov G.P. The fate and sins of Russia. Selected articles on the philosophy of Russian history and culture. - In 2 vols. - St. Petersburg, 1991

11. Shchuchenko V.A. Spirituality of Russia: I.A. Ilyin in the context of modernity // Spirituality of Russia: traditions and current state

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IN Lately discussions about the Russian mentality and especially the difference between the mentalities of Europeans and Russians are extremely politicized. Therefore, it is difficult for our compatriots traveling to Europe to form an objective opinion about how much the mentality of a Russian person actually differs from the European one and in which countries it is easiest to get used to local life. We set out to answer this question without prejudice and without political overtones. And for this we turned to our customers who have been living in the European Union for quite a long time.

Common Mistake

Of course, Russians and Ukrainians are sure that they know everything about the Western mentality. However, in practice it often turns out that this is not the case, and our own self-confidence plays with us. bad joke. Moreover, many people do not even know their own mentality well enough.

Once abroad, we hardly get along with others, spend nerve cells and even fall into depression from the fact that there is nothing around that would warm the soul. What is wrong?

You need to learn more about your own mentality in advance, analyze the peculiarities of the mentality and the cultural and social situation in the country where we are going, make a comparison and understand the mental differences. The analysis will help us assess how harmoniously we will "fit" into the new environment.

Russian mentality: its features

What is the Russian mentality? Wikipedia gives the following definition: “Mentality is a set of mental, emotional, cultural characteristics, value orientations and attitudes inherent in a social or ethnic group, nation, people, nationality.

In many sociological studies, such signs of the Russian mentality appear

• desire to put the public interest ahead of the private
• sensory perception of reality
• openness, sincerity and kindness
• acts of mercy
• negative attitude towards formalities
• prejudice towards others
• dislike for those who "stick out" and who "need it the most"
• controversy
• commitment to gift products
• the desire to solve problems amicably and in an informal setting
• neglect of health

The difference between Western and Eastern mentality

Psychologists note the following differences between the Russian mentality and the Western

The mentality of the Russian people on European soil

When everything is on the shelves

Is there really an abyss between us and the Europeans that cannot be bridged? Not at all! It is worth noting that there are quite a lot of people in the CIS countries who have a character and traits similar to European ones. For them social adaptation passes quickly and easily.

“Austria turned out to be a very comfortable country for me,” says Dmitry Shashkov, a client of our company from Salzburg. - I moved here under the investment program, lived with the status of a residence permit for a little over a year, and now it has been 7 months since I received an Austrian passport. I’ll note right away that most of my acquaintances from Moscow would have had a hard time here. The Austrians are a people of business and living according to a schedule. They even have fun and relax during strictly allotted hours, which is wild for a Russian person. However, this way of life suits me 100%. I profess pragmatism and love when everything is laid out on the shelves. You clearly plan your future and know that there are no surprises around the corner.”

Useful Traits

And many immigrants find traits that are extremely useful for themselves in the mentality, culture, and traditions of a foreign people and borrow them with pleasure. It would seem that what is common between the Russians and the British ...

“Even before I applied for a residence permit in the UK and started doing business here, it seemed to me that we are quite different,” Grigory Lozovoy from Cambridge shares his impressions. – In practice, everything turned out differently. The British soul is no less mysterious than the Russian one. They also like to criticize themselves and immediately admire themselves. Moreover, their self-criticism is to be envied. They are very scrupulous about their successes, especially in business, they carefully plan things. And failures are experienced, probably no less tragically than our compatriots. What I took with pleasure from the British was their determination and self-confidence.

southern temperament

If you think that mentality Western civilization- this is pragmatism, detachment and coldness, then the southern peoples (Greeks, Spaniards, Portuguese) do not fall under these definitions at all.

“It seems that the Spaniards are obsessed with their own pleasures,” says Andrei Kartush from Barcelona. - For them, wild entertainment is a common activity that they can indulge in around the clock. This lifestyle often affects their work, which makes them very close to us. They can easily oversleep, be late. At the same time, they are energetic. Compared to the Spaniards, even the most expressive Russians fade into the background. Why do you think there are so many of our compatriots in Spain? Spaniards have a lot in common with Russians: lack of organization, unpredictability. If it were not for their overly "bulging" individualism, I would say that these are the same Russians, but much more expressive. Bribes that the Spaniards are extremely simple, sociable, sincere, hospitable. That is why Russians are comfortable in Spain. I bought a property here, applied for a residence permit and have been living for the third year without any problems with adaptation.”

If friendship, then for a long time

There are countries that are preferred by residents of certain countries or even regions. In particular, residents of Ukraine, especially its western regions, choose Hungary for immigration. There is a higher standard of living affordable prices and favorable conditions for obtaining a residence permit and citizenship.

“It's been a year and a half since we moved to Budapest from Kyiv under the Permanent Residence for Investment program,” says our client Irina Kolganova. - Hungary is close to us in terms of mentality, if only because for a long time it was also socialist country, and this left an imprint on its inhabitants. Hungarians are contradictory: they combine the features of East and West. In the same person you can see Turkish hospitality and German stinginess. But most often we meet positive, friendly people, especially among young people. Hungarians are much calmer and more reasonable than Russians. Probably, our emotionality and unpredictability scares them away. Nevertheless, they are loyal to migrants, it is not so easy to get along with them, but if friendship has developed, you will not regret it.”

Unfortunately, politics has spoiled a lot in Russian relations with European peoples. Also, the memory of the activities of the Soviet government, the Second World War, is still alive. This must be taken into account when choosing a country for immigration.

If we talk about countries in which foreigners respond positively to the Russian mentality, then these are Greece, Spain, Portugal, Serbia, Slovenia, Malta. We have had practically no historical conflicts with the peoples of these countries, so you will be received there as cordially as possible.

The Russian mentality is quite tolerant in Hungary, Great Britain, Austria, the Netherlands, and France. No wonder it is in these countries that the largest number of immigrants from the CIS countries live.

When choosing a country for obtaining a residence permit or citizenship, be sure to analyze the features of your own mentality and compare with the local mentality. Only in this way will you protect yourself from unnecessary conflicts and negative experiences.

In turn, in our blog we will continue to inform you about the most profitable immigration programs in Europe and answer your questions and comments. Subscribe to our updates and stay up to date!

Mentality is a system of originality of the mental life of people belonging to a particular culture, a qualitative set of features of their perception and assessment of the world around them, which are of a supra-situational nature, due to the economic, political, historical circumstances of the development of this particular community and manifested in a peculiar behavioral activity. "Mentality" means something in common, underlying the conscious and unconscious, logical and emotional, a deep, hard-to-reflect source of thinking, ideology, faith, feelings and emotions.

2.1 Religiosity

The main, deepest feature of the character of the Russian people, distinguished by Russian philosophers, is its religiosity and the search for absolute good associated with it, therefore, such good that is feasible only in the Kingdom of God. Perfect good without any admixture of evil and imperfections exists in the Kingdom of God because it consists of persons who fully realize in their behavior the two commandments of Jesus Christ: love God more than yourself and your neighbor as yourself. Members of the Kingdom of God are completely free from egoism, and therefore they create only absolute values ​​- moral goodness, beauty, knowledge of the truth, indivisible and indestructible blessings that serve the whole world.

2.2 Superstition

Despite all the religiosity, the Russian people are characterized by such a trait as superstition. A black cat crossing your path cannot be left unattended; try not to spill salt or break mirrors; if you are going to an exam, do not forget to put a nickel under your heel ... And this is only a small particle of all superstitions, and a huge number of them will accept them.

The latest fashion is oriental calendars. At the beginning of each year, Russians excitedly ask each other whose year it is: the Tiger, the Horse or the Monkey ... Even a completely prudent lady can say in all seriousness that since she was born in the year of the Rat, she cannot marry this man, because that his year of birth is not compatible with hers.

2.3 Freedom

Among the primary properties of the Russian people, along with religiosity, the search for absolute goodness and willpower, is the love of freedom and the highest expression of its freedom of spirit. This property is closely connected with the search for absolute goodness. In fact, perfect good exists only in the Kingdom of God, it is superearthly, therefore, in our kingdom of egoistic beings, only semi-good always occurs, a combination of positive values ​​with some kind of imperfection, i.e., good combined with some aspect of evil. When a person determines which of the possible ways of behavior to choose, he does not have mathematically reliable knowledge about the best way actions. Therefore, one who has the freedom of spirit is inclined to test all value not only in thought, but also in deed.

2.4 Universality

Among the constants of the national mentality, it is necessary to note the "all-humanity" of the Russian soul, its openness to other cultures and influences, which Dostoevsky spoke about. This is manifested, in particular, in a very high level of interethnic tolerance, the ability to adapt to different ethno-cultural conditions, in a heightened interest in the experience of other countries and peoples, accompanied by a willingness to test and apply it at home. Historically, such features contributed to the successful creation of a huge multinational empire, the "building blocks" of which were cemented by the ability of Russians to find a common language with representatives of the most different cultures and religions. The ethnopsychology of Russians has always been characterized by the ability to accept as "their own" people from any other national groups, which gave the Russian state expansion a very specific character. In any case, no other empire has ever been built on this.

2.5 Sense of justice

Many Russian thinkers recognized as an archetypal feature of the "Russian soul" an ardent desire to reach "to the root", to find the "real truth", perceived as a kind of absolute. Moreover, on the way to this absolute, Russians are often ready to mercilessly destroy what until recently seemed sacred, correct, or at least quite acceptable.

2.6 Kindness, responsiveness

Among the primary, basic properties of the Russian people is its outstanding kindness. It is supported and deepened by the search for absolute goodness and the religiosity of the people associated with it.

3.7 Leveling aspirations

This trend over the centuries has become one of the dominant values ​​in the minds of the people, actively opposing individual efforts to strengthen private property - enrichment, by no means stimulating distribution according to work. It is necessary to pay attention to the Russian proverb: "from the labors of the righteous you will not make stone chambers."

The socially educated features of the Russian mentality include the following.

1. Collectivism and catholicity developed by centuries of life in a rural community. The community did not appear suddenly, but as a historically formed necessity for existence, as a reaction to low soil fertility, low agricultural productivity and harsh climatic conditions, in which it was easier to survive being in a community and using mutual assistance than alone. Russian history has shown that its course is determined not by socio-economic theories of changing social formations, but by the habit of the Russian population for a certain way of life, especially the habit of the rural population for life in a community. At the same time, it should be borne in mind that the stability of socially educated mentality traits is lower than that of genetically and nature-based ones, therefore, urbanization and the rapid reduction of the rural population in Russia may in the near future lead to the degradation of the mentioned collectivist tradition and undermine one of the main foundations of Russian civilization.

2. A heightened sense of injustice among the Russian people of social inequality that infringes on the interests of the poor. This trait can be seen as a manifestation of collectivism. Hence the ancient feeling of social compassion for people who are spiritually and physically handicapped: the poor, holy fools, cripples, etc., and the leveling tendencies in the Russian understanding of social justice.

3. The religiosity of the Russian people, brought up by the church and the authorities for almost a thousand years. Religion in Russia has always gone hand in hand with secular power. The tsar was considered the representative of God's power on earth, and the Russian national idea was expressed for several centuries in the formula "God, tsar and fatherland." A specific form of Russian religiosity was Orthodoxy, introduced in Rus' again by secular power in the person of Prince Vladimir. The social essence of Orthodoxy, based on the concepts of social justice, goodness, the supremacy of the spirit over the flesh, embodied in the church biographies of Orthodox saints, as well as the forms of Orthodox religious rites - fasts, religious festivals, etc. them to the mentality of the Russian people. This correspondence explains the stability Orthodox faith in the Russian people.

4. The cult of the leader. Deep religiosity, understood as the hope for a deliverer from life's hardships, contributed to the formation of such a socially educated Russian trait as the cult of the leader. The whole of Russian history passed under the sign first of the power of the prince, then the tsar, and in the Soviet period under the flag of the personality cult of the head of the communist party. In all cases, it was the sole power of the leader (prince, king, general secretary) and the people blindly relied on him. It can be noted that the cult of the leader is also promoted by collectivism, one of the manifestations of which is the subconscious subordination of the individual to the collective, and in his person to the one who expresses the collective interests, that is, the leader who personifies the collective in the mass consciousness. Hence the currently observed lack of initiative of the main part of the population, political infantilism, inability to politically self-organize, unwillingness to take responsibility for socially significant actions.

5. National and religious tolerance. Almost one and a half hundred different peoples have been peacefully living on the territory of Russia for many centuries. In Russia, there has never been racial hatred, religious wars, prohibitions on interethnic marriages. The country, with few exceptions, has historically been formed as a voluntary multinational association. This could not but give rise to such a socially educated Russian trait as national and religious tolerance.

6. Finally, one cannot fail to mention Russian patriotism. Patriotism exists in any country, but the basis of patriotism in different countries different. Russian patriotism is patriotism based on people's awareness of their community. The rise of the Russian patriotic spirit has always arose in the years of difficult trials, not for individual people, classes or groups of the population, but for the whole people, when it began to acutely realize itself as historical community, which is in great danger - enslavement or destruction.

GOU VPO

Voronezh State Medical Academy named after V.I. N.N. Burdenko"

Abstract on the topic:

"Characteristics of the features of the Russian mentality".

Completed: student P-509

Lyamina O.S.

Voronezh 2009

Mentality is one of the basic concepts of modern humanitarian knowledge. It includes the main characteristics of an ethnos and is one of the leading criteria when comparing nations with each other.

The mentality is the subject of consideration of several humanities, each of which brings its own feature to the definition of this concept. The modern Philosophical Encyclopedic Dictionary interprets mentality as a way of thinking, the general spiritual mood of a person or group, limited only to the study of thinking. Encyclopedic Dictionary Terra Lexicon under this concept means a certain way of thinking, a set of mental skills and spiritual attitudes inherent in an individual person or a social group. In this interpretation, there is no mention of the language as an important component of the mentality, and of the cultural characteristics, probably, only behavioral features are taken into account.

One-sided interpretation is not a feature of only modern science. Mentality as an independent subject of research began to be considered in the 20-30s. 20th century At the beginning of the 20th century, the term "mentality" seems to have been used in two ways. In ordinary speech, this somewhat fashionable term denoted preferably collective systems of attitude and behavior, "forms of the spirit." At the same time, it also appears in the scientific lexicon, but again as a “way of thinking” or “peculiarities of attitude”.

There are many definitions of what mentality is, here are some of them:

Mentality is a special “psychological equipment” (M. Blok), “symbolic paradigms” (M. Eliade), “dominant metaphors” (P. Ricoeur), “archaic remnants” (Z. Freud) or “archetypes” (K. Jung), "... the presence of which is not explained by the individual's own life, but follows from the primitive innate and inherited sources of the human mind."

The term mentality originated in France. It is already found in separate works by R. Emerson in 1856. In addition, W. Raoulf, based on an analysis of French journalism at the turn of the 19th-20th centuries. came to the conclusion that the semantic charge of the word mentality was formed before [Raulf W. History of mentalities. To the reconstruction of spiritual processes. Digest of articles. - M., 1995. S. 14], as the term appeared in everyday speech.

It is generally accepted that the category of mentality was one of the first to introduce the category of mentality into the scientific terminology after the publication of his works by the French psychologist and ethnographer L. Levy-Bruhl. In its essence, mentality is historically processed archetypal representations, through the prism of which the perception of the main aspects of reality takes place: space, time, art, politics, economics, culture, civilization, religion. Consideration of the mental features of the consciousness of a particular social group allows one to penetrate into the “hidden” layer of social consciousness, which more objectively and deeply conveys and reproduces the mood of the era, to reveal a deeply rooted and hidden behind the ideology slice of reality - images, ideas, perceptions, which in most cases remains unchanged even when changing one ideology to another. This is explained by the greater, in comparison with ideology, stability of mental structures.

J. Le Goff also noted that “mentalities change more slowly than anything else, and their study teaches how slowly history moves” [Disputes about the main thing: Discussions about the present and future of historical science around the French Annales school. - M., 1993.- S. 149.]. If ideology, with certain deviations, as a whole develops progressively, so to speak linearly, then within the framework of mentality, representations change in the form of oscillations of various amplitudes and rotations around a certain central axis. At the heart of such a movement and the development of mentality lies a certain way of life.

So, mentality is a concept that is very rich in content, reflecting the general spiritual mood, way of thinking, worldview of an individual or a social group, insufficiently conscious, in which the unconscious occupies a large place.

The mental characteristics of Russian culture are characterized by a number of specific features, which are due to the fact that any attempt to present Russian culture as a holistic, historically continuously developing phenomenon, which has its own logic and pronounced national identity, encounters great internal difficulties and contradictions. Every time it turns out that at any stage of its formation and historical development, Russian culture seems to double, showing two distinct faces at the same time. European and Asian, sedentary and nomadic, Christian and pagan, secular and spiritual, official and oppositional, collective and individual - these and similar pairs of opposites have been characteristic of Russian culture since ancient times and have actually been preserved to this day. Double faith, doublethink, dual power, split - these are just a few of the concepts significant for understanding the historian of Russian culture, which are already identified at the stage of ancient Russian culture. Such a stable inconsistency of Russian culture, which, on the one hand, gives rise to an increased dynamism of its self-development, and, on the other hand, a periodically escalating conflict. intrinsic to the culture itself; constitutes its organic originality, typological feature, and is called binary by researchers (from lat. duality).

Binarity in the structure of Russian culture is an undoubted result of the border geopolitical position of Rus'-Russia between East and West. Russia, throughout its history and geography, has been a Eurasian society for centuries, either striving to get closer to its European neighbors, or gravitating towards the Asian world throughout the entire system of life. [Semennikova L.I. Russia in the world community of civilizations. - M., 1994.]

It was (since the Golden Horde) a country of border civilization. Cultural figures of the West perceived Russia as a country of a different, non-European order. So, G. Hegel did not even include Russians in his list of Christian peoples of Europe. Many observers came to the conclusion that Russia is a kind of Eurasian hybrid, in which there are no clear signs of either part of the world. Oswald Spengler argued that Russia is a centaur with a European head and an Asian body. With the victory of Bolshevism, Asia conquers Russia, after Europe annexed it in the person of Peter the Great [The quote is from the book Russia and the West: Dialogue of Cultures. M., 1994].

In addition, cultural and historical paradigms in Russian history were layered on top of each other: one stage has not yet ended, while another has already begun. The future aspired to be realized when the conditions for this had not yet been formed, and, on the contrary, the past was in no hurry to leave the historical stage, clinging to traditions, norms and values. A similar historical layering of stages, of course, is also found in other world cultures - Eastern and Western, but in Russian culture it becomes a permanent, typological feature: paganism coexists with Christianity, the traditions of Kievan Rus are intertwined with Mongolian innovations in the Muscovite kingdom, in Petrine Russia there is a sharp modernization combined with the deep traditionalism of pre-Petrine Russia, etc. Russian Culture for centuries was at that historical crossroads, on the one hand, the modernization paths of civilizational development characteristic of Western European culture, on the other hand, the paths of organic traditionalism characteristic of the countries of the East. Russian culture has always striven for modernization, but modernization in Russia has been slow, difficult, constantly weighed down by the unambiguousness and fixedness of traditions, continually rebelling against them and violating them. Hence the numerous heretical mass movements, and the daring thirst for freedom (robbers, Cossacks), and the search for alternative forms of power (imposterism), etc.

The mental characteristics of Russian culture historically evolved naturally as a complex, disharmonious, unstable balance of forces of integration and differentiation of contradictory trends in the national-historical existence of the Russian people, like a socio-cultural balance (often on the verge of a national catastrophe or in connection with its approaching danger), which declared itself in the most decisive, crisis moments of the history of Russia and contributed to the survival of Russian culture in extremely difficult for her, and sometimes, it would seem, simply impossible socio-historical conditions and everyday circumstances as a high adaptability of Russian culture to any, including directly anti-cultural factors of its more than a thousand years of history.

Absolutism is inherent in the Russian mentality - which is reflected even in the Russian language: the frequency of such words as "absolutely", "perfectly" - as well as synonymous with them "terrible", "terrible" - is more than ten times higher in the Russian language, than, say, in English. And the very synonymy of those and other concepts draws an image of global, amazing and extreme changes. Sometimes they go beyond the rational and rational, since the collective mind, like ideology, is the preservation of the existing - and for the sake of a radical change it is necessary to overturn it too.

The constant need for something fundamentally new gives rise to the desire to actively adopt someone else's (just as quickly consigning one's own to oblivion: neglecting it as obsolete). Russian thought was often blamed for turning to foreign heritage, for lack of its own. However, they did not indicate the reverse side of the medal: the ability to assimilate and implement other people's ideas as universal. It is the constant striving for a fundamentally different, new, as well as the perception of the universalism (objectivity) of ideas that makes it possible to cultivate them on one's own soil.

The second Russian trait is going beyond one's own: not only at the level of society, but above all at the level of the individual, which is manifested in overcoming interpersonal barriers. This feature is clearly visible to everyone who has been abroad: Russians strive to unite their own and others, organizing collective interaction in any conditions. They easily manage to do this, unlike representatives of other nations, and this is due to the lack of fear and the habit of invading the very essence of someone else's life, crossing the personal barrier and overcoming the isolation of individuality. Usually this quality is referred to as "Russian sincerity." Foreigners often perceive it as aggression: an attack on a person. For the vast majority of nations, the boundaries of the individual are sacred, and the psychological barrier between souls is insurmountable.

The concept of morality is inextricably linked with the concept of truth, which is very significant for the Russian mentality - which is confirmed by the Russian language. The Russian word “pravda” not only has a high frequency in the Russian language compared to others, but also the epithet “mother” (pravda-womb, pravda-mother), depicting the blood closeness of truth to a person, his original womb and refuge. And also a synonym for "truth", meaning the highest truth: the truth in the spiritual sense, which links it with the concept of the source of morality and ideal.

We can safely say that the desire to unite people / peoples by an ideal or some kind of universal idea is typical of our character. Fulfilling such a role, Russia (Russian people) has a face in front of other peoples (people).

The concepts of the soul are also important for the Russian mentality: as a special internal, meaningful world- and fate, correlated with humility and the expression "nothing can be done." Such concepts of soul and destiny as unique: inherent only in the Russian language.

This character trait is physically confirmed by more than half a year of hibernation of nature and external passivity during this period - against the background of which there is an internal, unconscious fermentation of the psyche, predisposing to deep religious perception (recent studies have appeared proving that the shortness of daylight hours contributes to meditation , although also depression). The consequence of this is the philosophical depth of spiritual life, manifested primarily not even by philosophers, but by writers whose works have won world fame (Tolstoy or Dostoevsky). When the clear mind falls silent, the images speak. The fact that Russian philosophy expresses itself in fiction more clearly than in rational-logical concepts has been repeatedly pointed out by historians of Russian philosophy, among them E.L. Radlov and A.F. Losev.

Nations deprived of such a prolonged forced decline in physical activity (inevitable in our climate, no matter how the current stressful, violent social rhythm of life may influence it), do not develop such emotional-spiritual philosophical depth.

Also, Russian Orthodoxy played a huge role in the formation of the mental characteristics of Russian culture. It gave an inner certainty to the mentality of the Russian people and during the last millennium determines the spiritual potential of the nation. The Orthodox faith plays the role of a spiritual core or spiritual substance for the Russian national mentality. Orthodoxy did not preach the idea of ​​predestination. And therefore, the responsibility for sins committed of one's own free will fell on the sinner. It was understandable and acceptable. Orthodoxy in this context is identical to the emotional and artistic structure of the Russian mentality: it reflects the Russian commitment to absolute spiritual values, maximalism, figurative and symbolic construction of the national national culture.

The historical conditions of existence, the spatial environment, the Orthodox religion and the Russian Orthodox Church as a socio-cultural institution left an indelible imprint on the Russian national mentality.

The Orthodox faith is a special, independent and great word in the history and system of Christianity. The Russian national spirit and national morality, respect and love for all tribes and peoples are based on Orthodoxy.

The moral and religious dominant gives rise to a number of features of the Russian cultural mentality. Firstly, not a single people had a Christian idea at the national-state level, only Russians. Secondly, the Russian people are capable of religious and philosophical thinking. Thirdly, only Russians tend to cognize the world with religious intuition, unlike the West. Fourthly, of all European peoples, the Slavs, and especially the Russians, are the most inclined towards religion, for they believed in ancient times in one God, and in our monotheistic paganism there was a premonition of Christ and the Mother of God, and Christian concepts such as God, paradise, hell, demons were originally Slavic.

The mental characteristic of Russian culture, which was conditioned by Orthodoxy, is the attitude towards private property, wealth and justice in the Russian mentality. The economic experience of the Russians was dominated not by economic interest, but by the established moral economy, which has survival as its main goal. Therefore, people abandoned economic success and the risk associated with it, those values ​​that seem natural in a modern liberal civilization. Property relations for the bulk of the population were of a labor nature, and the achievement of material well-being was not an end in itself. Hence the relative indifference to material wealth and individual property in the character of Russians. The absence of traditions of private property in Russia is an Orthodox view of wealth, which is not the result of labor, it is sent by God and is given not for accumulation and storage, but for beneficial use pleasing to others. The focus is on the righteous use of wealth, not the acquisition of it. Wealth should serve man, and not vice versa. Income was not an end in itself.

In Russia, the Orthodox ethics of entrepreneurship and commodity-money relations was created, while Western Christianity cultivated pragmatism, hoarding, a passion for money and wealth in a person. In the Russian mentality, the category of prosperity acquires the greatest value, as a measure of spirituality in joining wealth. Entrepreneurs looked at their activities differently than in the West, not so much as a source of profit, but as the fulfillment of a task assigned to them by God or fate. Entrepreneurship was seen as a certain kind of creativity, self-affirmation.

Wealth in Orthodox ethics was perceived as a violation of fair mechanisms. And if the market economy is based on the principles of rationality and expediency, then in Russia priority is given to the ideas of justice. In the historical mentality, the Russians have developed an egalitarian understanding of justice, associated with the harsh climatic conditions of Russia, the need for the physical survival of people. Here there was no objective possibility to ensure the distribution of produced material goods in proportion to the merits of each person to society. Ideas about equality in the Russian mentality are predominantly moral, not legal in nature.

Under the influence of Orthodoxy, a moral tradition of world exploration and management was formed in the Russian mentality, which is preserved even where conscious religiosity has been lost. Russian world development is characterized by the principles of a religious and ethical approach to the development of life.

Many researchers note the indifference of Russians to the arrangement of their earthly life, some strange disregard for the material layer, comfort, convenience of existence. When a culture is oriented towards eternity, then human existence in it is perceived as especially short and ephemeral. In the “Cherubic Song” there are the words: “Abandon all worldly care now ...”, which means relegating to the background all the troubles associated with ensuring material well-being, arrangements in this world. At the same time, the world for such a person is only a temporary refuge, and the leading type of attitude is “delicate patience of a guest”.

The inversion of culture into eternity explains why it has a weakly developed time perspective, focus on the future. Therefore, in such cultures it is incredibly difficult to reform anything. They strongly resist any changes, and if they occur, then they are revolutionary, or rather, apocalyptic in nature.

Another mental characteristic of Russian culture is self-sacrifice. Self-sacrifice is an absolute value in our culture. Quite strange things happened several times in history - on the eve of and during terrible troubles that threatened to destroy humanity, many European countries, their unique, original cultures and peoples were saved by the voluntary bloody sacrifice of Russia.

Of course, the original Russian culture and its spiritual center - Orthodoxy - are difficult for representatives of other national cultures to understand. Pushkin brilliantly said about this: "The Greek religion, separate from all others, gives us a special national character." It is not surprising that the West does not know and does not understand us, it is much more important that we ourselves know and understand our culture and mentality.

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