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Abstract
This essay focuses on the role of patriotic socialisation amongst a selected sample from the cohort born in the early 1980s. This understudied group occupies a unique space in Russia’s societal and political developments, including Putin-era patriotic education. The qualitative case study shows that respondents’ personal and positive memories of the Soviet-era patriotism have no positive connection with the current patriotic education. While they acknowledge the virtues of official patriotism, they are also critical of certain aspects, in particular, its militaristic emphasis.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 ‘Kriterii patriotizma’, FOM, 3 September 2020, available at: https://fom.ru/TSennosti/14446, accessed 17 May 2021.
2 ʻPatrioticheskoe vospitanie molodezhi v Rossiiskoi Federatsii: sostoyanie, aktual'nye problemy i napravleniya razvitiya’, Sovet Federatsii Federal'nogo Sobraniya Rossiiskoi Federatsii, 2015, available at: http://council.gov.ru/activity/analytics/publications/626/, accessed 8 May 2020.
3 ʻPatrioticheskoe vospitanie molodezhi v Rossiiskoi Federatsii: sostoyanie, aktual'nye problemy i napravleniya razvitiya’, Sovet Federatsii Federal'nogo Sobraniya Rossiiskoi Federatsii, 2015, available at: http://council.gov.ru/activity/analytics/publications/626/, accessed 8 May 2020.
4 In the case of China, see, for example, Doyon and Tsimonis, this issue.
5 See also Pynnöniemi (Citation2021).
6 ‘Russia Average Monthly Wages by Region 1992–2020’, CEIC Analytics, available at: https://www.ceicdata.com/en/russia/average-monthly-wages-by-region, accessed 8 May 2022.
7 Interview 3, male middle manager, private sector, Leningrad Region, 20 March 2020.
8 The Soviet-era youth organisation for children between seven and nine years of age.
9 Interview 10, online, female university administrator, state sector, 1 April 2020.
10 Interview 7, male mid-level manager, state sector, St Petersburg, 30 March 2020.
11 Interview 1, male middle manager, private sector, St Petersburg, 4 March 2020.
12 Interview 8, online, female middle manager, state sector, 13 March 2020.
13 Interview 11, online, female middle manager, private sector, 4 April 2020.
14 As Cameron Ross points out, state-dependence constitutes a key defining feature of the middle class in its support to opposition protests or the regime (Ross Citation2015, p. 93).
15 Interview 7, male mid-level manager, state sector, St Petersburg, 30 March 2020.
16 Interview 5, female senior manager, state sector, Moscow, 25 March 2020.
17 Interview 14, online, self-employed female, 10 April 2020.
18 Interview 12, online, male businessman, 6 April 2020.
19 Interview 16, online, female university teacher, state sector, 13 April 2020.
20 Polovtsians (Polovtsy, Cumans or Kumans) and Pechenegs or Patzinaks were ancient semi-nomadic people from Central Asia. Vladimir Putin has referred to them in his speech related to the coronavirus pandemic (8 April 2020) as examples of threats that Russia has overcome in its history.
21 Interview 19, online, female university teacher, private sector, 17 April 2020.
22 Interview 2, male middle manager, state sector, St Petersburg, 12 March 2020.
23 Interview 23, online, male senior manager, state sector, 27 April 2020.
24 Interview 17, online, male, private school teacher and sports organiser, 13 April 2020.
25 Interview 20, online, female business owner, 23 April 2020.
26 Interview 12, online, male businessman, 6 April 2020.
27 Interview 8, online, female middle manager, state sector, 31 March 2020.
28 Interview 3, male middle manager, private sector, Leningrad Region, 20 March 2020.
29 Interview 20, online, female business owner, 23 April 2020.
30 Interview 1, male middle manager, private sector, St Petersburg, 4 March 2020.
31 Interview 18, online, self-employed male, 17 April 2020.
32 Interview 21, online, female senior manager, state sector, 23 April 2020.
33 Interview 24, online, male university administrator, state sector, 27 April 2020.
34 Interview 22, online, female university teacher, state sector, 27 April 2020.
35 Interview 25, online, male university teacher, state sector, 29 April 2020.
36 Interview 15, online, female university teacher, private sector, 12 April 2020.
37 Interview 13, online, self-employed male, 10 April 2020.
38 The respondent referred to Joseph de Maistre’s (1753–1821) famous quote: ‘Every nation gets the government it deserves’.
39 Interview 3, male middle manager, private sector, Leningrad Region, 20 March 2020.
40 Interview 4, female senior manager, private sector, Moscow, 25 March 2020.
41 Interview 23, online, male senior manager, state sector, 27 April 2020.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Jussi Lassila
Jussi Lassila, Finnish Institute of International Affairs, Arkadiankatu 23B, P.O. Box 425, Helsinki 00101, Finland. Email: [email protected]
Anna Sanina
Anna Sanina, HSE University, 16 Soyuza Pechatnikov Street, St Petersburg 190121, Russian Federation. Email: [email protected]