Three Vladimirs and the Return of Russian Exceptionalism

• In Event: Russian Exceptionalism: Multidisciplinary Perspectives

Abstract

Soviet nation-building strategies were successful in instilling in the majority of Soviet citizens a strong sense of Soviet exceptionalism. Even when the people did not believe in communist ideology anymore, they did share a sense of living in a country that was in many ways unique and superior to the rest of the world. The symbolic shock of the Soviet collapse is in large part associated with the loss of these shared beliefs that the former Soviet people used to orient themselves in the world. This study explores the return of these beliefs in contemporary Russia. It is based on the analysis of Vladimir Solovyev’s political talk shows to illustrate how the state-controlled media in Russia promotes the idea of Russian exceptionalism and moral superiority. This frame is advanced both overtly and covertly, through the frame that presents Russia as a besieged fortress. I argue that these two ideas represent the essential elements of the Kremlin’s legitimation strategy in the last five years, since the 2014 Crimea annexation.

Author

• Peter Rutland, Wesleyan U