ISSN 1132-0265 Philologia Hispalensis 26/1-2 (2012) 107-127
RepResen a ions o ideological and cul uRal
alues in modeRn Russian poli ical discouRse
Ta iana Dub o skaya & Ta iana Kha lamo a
Penza Uni e si y o Ecology and Poli ical Sciences &
Sa a o S a e Uni e si y, Russia
Resumen: Es e a ículo o ece una isión del discu so polí ico uso ac ual y ana-
liza 16 discu sos p onunciados po p esiden es usos a la Fede al Assembly
(Asamblea Fede al). Se ha a ado de demos a que exis e una elación i-
pa i a en e lenguaje, ideologías polí icas y alo es cul u ales. El análisis del
discu so nos pe mi e señala concep os p imo diales y palab as cla es que en-
ca nan alo es cul u ales e ideológicos, al y como se encuen an en los ex os.
A a és de los ejemplos omados de los discu sos se ilus an supues os eó i-
cos sob e las elaciones de pode y el ni el de indi idualismo/colec i ismo en
la Rusia ac ual.
Palab as cla e: discu so polí ico, p esiden e, ideologías, alo es cul u ales.
Abs ac : The p esen pape p o ides an insigh in o mode n Russian poli i-
cal discou se and o e s he analysis o 16 speeches deli e ed by Russian P esi-
den s o he Fede al Assembly. An a emp has been made o demons a e ha
he e exis s a ipa i e connec ion be ween language, poli ical ideologies and
cul u al alues. The analysis o he discou se allows o single ou p inciple con-
cep s and key wo ds which embody cul u al and ideological alues, as hey a e
embedded in he ex s. Theo e ical assump ions on powe dis ance and he de-
g ee o indi idualism/collec i ism in he mode n Russia a e illus a ed wi h in-
s ances o discou se.
Keywo ds: poli ical discou se, p esiden , ideologies, cul u al alues.
1. In Roduc Ion
The p esen pape p o ides an insigh in o mode n Russian poli ical dis-
cou se and o e s some sugges i e conclusions as o how cul u al and ideologi-
cal alues a e embodied in language.
The idea ha ideologies a e c ea ed, p ac ised and main ained by means o
language is no no el. Mode n schola s o C i ical Discou se Analysis (CDA)
ha e eached conside able esul s in explaining how language and ideology a e
in e ela ed. Simila ly, a lo has been w i en abou he connec ion be ween
108 Ta iana Dub o skaya & Ta iana Kha lamo a
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language and na ional men ali y, he la e being exp essed h ough language. In
his pape , d awing on he achie emen s o CDA and cul u al s udies, we ha e
made an a emp o s ep u he and econcile he c i ical iew on discou se
wi h he analysis o cul u al alues. We ha e ied o demons a e ha he e is a
ipa i e connec ion be ween language, poli ical ideologies and cul u al alues.
While he minu iae o in e ac ion can ell us a g ea deal abou poli ical beha -
iou , we shall concen a e on cul u al and ideological alues embedded in he
ex s.
To a ain his goal o he s udy, we ha e unde aken a mul i-disciplina y ap-
p oach. The me hodological amewo k o he s udy encompasses he heo y o
cul u al dimensions, as de eloped by Ho s ede (Ho s ede 2001), p incipal de-
elopmen s in Russian cul u al s udies, and esul s o social esea ch conduc ed
by sociologis s in he mode n Russia. Linguis ic analysis o speech da a ca ied
ou in he p esen s udy is iewed as a key o unde s anding social p ocesses
ha a e unde way in he coun y. The esea ch is based on he con en analysis
(quali a i e and quan i a i e) which leads o de e mining key wo ds ha em-
body p incipal ideological alues o he cu en momen , as well as explaining
he causal e ec s o discou se on social li e.
The da a o he esea ch is comp ised o 16 speeches ha Russian P esiden s
B. Yel sin, V. Pu in and D. Med ede deli e ed o he Fede al Assembly o he
Russian Fede a ion in 1994-2009. T ansla ions o he p esiden s’ add esses ha e
been aken om he o icial websi e o P esiden o Russia (eng.k emlin. u). In
o de o shed ligh on he in e ac ion be ween he au ho i ies and he public,
ma e ials o he P esiden ’s blog ha e been explo ed (2009). T ansla ion o he
blog en ies in o English has been done by he au ho s o he p esen a icle.
The a icle consis s o 5 pa s. I begins wi h he in oduc ion. In pa 2, we
discuss he concep s o ideology and cul u al alues and de ine ou own ap-
p oach o hese concep s. In pa 3, we ocus a en ion on he cul u al dimen-
sion “Powe dis ance” and p esen he ou look on Russian men ali y in e ms o
a i ude o powe dis ibu ion and powe dis ance. The heo e ical assump ions
a e ollowed by he p ac ical analysis o speech da a which shows how powe
dis ance is es ablished and main ained by means o language in poli ical dis-
cou se. In pa 4, we elabo a e on he dimension “Indi idualism e sus Collec-
i ism” and discuss he impo ance o he concep s in ques ion o he Russian
communi y. The linguis ic analysis ha ollows is aimed a h owing ligh on
how hese concep s a e p esen ed in poli ical discou se. In pa 5, he main e-
sul s o he s udy a e summa ised and concluding ema ks a e made.
2. He conceP s o Ideology And cul uRAl Alues
Now ha we ha e de ined he goals and me hod o he p esen s udy and
p esen ed he da a unde analysis, i would be app op ia e o ocus on he con-
cep s o ideology and cul u al alues as hese a e key e ms in he a icle. We
Ideological and cul u al alues in mode n ussian poli ical discou se 109
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shall demons a e ha ideology and cul u al alues a e inex icably in e wined
and, he e o e, should be iewed in a combina ion.
The e m ideology has been exploi ed in ensi ely and ex ensi ely ac oss a
numbe o disciplines, including his o y, philosophy, poli ical economy, an h o-
pology. Linguis ics, especially he s udy o language as a social phenomenon,
canno be excluded om his numbe . Howe e , as Scollon & Scollon poin ou ,
“ he wo d ‘ideology’ is a di icul one o use, because i has been used in so many
di e en ways in he wo hund ed yea s o so o i s exis ence” (Scollon, Scollon
2005: 131).
Wi h exac ly he same idea Blommae s a s his discussion o “ he e mino-
logical muddle o ideologies” and no es (Blommae 2005: 158):
Few e ms a e as badly se ed by schola ship as he e m ideology, and as soon
as anyone en e s he ield o ideology s udies, he o she inds him/he sel in
a mo ass o con adic o y de ini ions, widely a ying app oaches o ideology,
and huge con o e sies o e e ms, phenomena, o models o analysis.
In his a emp o elabo a e he e m, Blommae dis inguishes wo majo a-
di ions o concep ualizing ideology. The schola connec s he i s adi ion wi h
Ma xis heo y in which ideology is in e p e ed as “ ied o he in e es s o pa -
icula social g oups and o p ocesses o powe and dominance” (Blommae
2006: 510). In he second adi ion o social s udies, ideology is unde s ood as
collec i e psychology ha is made up o idea ional complexes which p esen he
deepe laye s o cul u e and socie y and u n g oups o people in o communi ies,
socie ies and cul u es (Blommae 2006: 510). This unde s anding o ideology is
neu al and cha ac e is ic o an h opological, e hnog aphic s udies.
While Blommae p e e s o ocus on he e hnog aphic adi ion, mos dis-
cou se analys s unde ake he app oach es ing on a close connec ion be ween
ideology and powe . Scollon & Scollon de ine ideology as “a sys em o hinking,
social p ac ice, and communica ion, which is used ei he o b ing a pa icula
g oup o social powe o o legi ima e hei posi ion o social powe …” (Scollon,
Scollon 2005: 131).
The in e p e a ion o ideology as inex icably linked o powe ela ions is
pa icula ly salien wi hin he adi ion o C i ical Discou se Analysis. Fai -
clough p o ides he ollowing de ini ion o ideology: “Ideologies a e ep esen-
a ions o aspec s o he wo ld which can be shown o con ibu e o es ablishing,
main aining and changing social ela ions o powe , domina ion and exploi a-
ion” (Fai clough 2004: 9). The schola calls his iew o ideology ‘c i ical’ and
opposes i o ‘desc ip i e’ iews ha a e gi en wi hou e e ence o powe and
domina ion.
In he p esen pape an app oach is unde aken which combines a na owe
in e p e a ion o ideology as a complex o ideas and p ac ices aimed a main-
aining a ce ain social o de and holding powe wi h a wide in e p e a ion o
110 Ta iana Dub o skaya & Ta iana Kha lamo a
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ideology as a sys em o belie s and mo al alues which is cha ac e is ic o all
people in a gi en speech communi y. We con end ha hese common belie s
and ideas embedded in he men ali y o mos people in a gi en speech com-
muni y can be deno ed by he e m cul u al alues. Ideology and cul u al alues
a e no , as we see hem, isola ed phenomena. On he con a y, ideology is en-
ac ed and inculca ed mos success ully in he socie y by ac ualizing and exploi -
ing ce ain cul u al alues.
The idea abou he in e connec ion be ween ideology and cul u al alues is
no absolu ely no el. Tu ning o cul u al models, Gee pe cep i ely s a es ha
cul u al models a e deeply implica ed in ‘poli ics’. By ‘poli ics’ he schola means
…any hing and anyplace ( alk, ex s, media, ac ion, in e ac ion, ins i u-
ions) whe e “social goods” a e a s ake, hings like powe , s a us, o alued
knowledge, posi ions, o possessions. Since cul u al models embed assump-
ions abou wha is “app op ia e”, “ ypical”, and/o “no mal”, hey a e poli ical
h ough and h ough (Gee 1999: 70).
E en hough he e m ideology is no used by Gee, i is qui e clea ha ideol-
ogy is in ol ed in he dis ibu ion o social goods, i s and o emos , powe .
Thus, on he one hand, we ha e deepe pe cep ions o he eali y and a num-
be o belie s which a e sha ed by mos people and egula e hei social beha -
iou . These a e mo e o less s able en i ies embedded in he people’s na ional
men ali y, and i akes ime o in oduce any d ama ic changes in people’s
minds. On he o he hand, we ha e ideologies ha a e c ea ed o poli ical pu -
poses, i.e. o main aining o changing social ela ions o powe .
Ideologies a e p ac ised, i s o all, h ough language. As Blommae has
indica ed,
…E e y ac o communica ion a icula es a me ap agma ics in which he lin-
guis ic-ideological ea u es ope a e. This me ap agma ic, indexical laye o
semio ic sys ems such as language is no neu al; i is e alua i e, ela ional, so-
cially posi ioned, in es ed wi h in e es s, and subjec o con es a ion and dom-
inance (Blommae 2006: 511).
Depending on a poli ical pu pose, ideologies change, and so does he lan-
guage used o ac ualize hem. The e o e, hese a e mo e lexible en i ies as com-
pa ed o cul u al alues.
In he analysis ha we shall unde ake u he , language and discu si e means
a e iewed as exp essing bo h cul u al alues and ideologies p ac ised a a pa -
icula his o ical momen . As i has been poin ed ou , language is ne e neu al,
i always bea s a ce ain cul u al and ideological load. Russian schola s Ki aig-
o odskaya and Rosano a, discussing poli ical communica ion in he Russia o
he 90s, a gue ha ideology inds i s e bal en elope in gene alised o mulae,
Ideological and cul u al alues in mode n ussian poli ical discou se 111
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slogans, and a b oad a ie y o p opaganda clichés (Ki aigo odskaya, Rosano a
1996). The e o e, he analysis o discu si e means in p esiden ial discou se will
le us iden i y he ideologies p ac ised and de ec how adi ional cul u al alues
a e ans o med unde he in luence o eme ging ideologies.
The s udy d aws on Ho s ede’s model o cul u e, acco ding o which se e al
socio-cul u al dimensions a e iden i ied: powe dis ance, indi idualism, mascu-
lini y, unce ain y a oidance, long- e m/sho - e m o ien a ion, and indulgence
e sus es ain . E e y cul u e can be cha ac e ised by a pa icula posi ion on
he scale o each socio-cul u al dimension. We assume ha i is possible o e-
eal his posi ion on he basis o linguis ic analysis. Ho s ede’s model has no
been applied widely in discou se analysis, bu i has p o ed bene icial o social
esea ch. One o such social s udies was pe o med by A dich ili and Kuchinke
who explo ed cul u al alues among manage s and subo dina es in ou coun-
ies o he o me So ie Union and de ined leade ship s yles acco dingly (A -
dich ili, Kuchinke 2002).
3. PoweR dIs Ance: PolI IcAl dIscouRse
RAns oRmIng cul uRAl Alues?
Ho s ede dis inguishes 6 dimensions o cul u e, bu we shall expand on hose
2 o hem ha seem mos enligh ening in e ms o powe ela ions.
Powe dis ance is, no doub , he mos impo an dimension in iew o he
ype o he discou se explo ed. Ho s ede de ines his dimension as ollows:
Powe dis ance is he ex en o which he less powe ul membe s o o gani-
za ions and ins i u ions (like he amily) accep and expec ha powe is dis-
ibu ed unequally. This ep esen s inequali y (mo e e sus less), bu de ined
om below, no om abo e. I sugges s ha a socie y’s le el o inequali y is
endo sed by he ollowe s as much as by he leade s (www.gee ho s ede.nl).
When applied o ou da a, ‘ he powe ul’ s ands o he P esiden (p esiden-
ial powe ), while ‘ he ollowe s’ include he coun y’s popula ion as a as and
unlimi ed ca ego y. Russian his o y has demons a ed immensely complica ed
ela ions be ween he powe ul and he ollowe s. Many schola s o Russian cul-
u e and his o y obse e ha Russian go e nance has always been e y s ong,
o ce ul and domina ing. “…Au ho i a ianism was he ule in Russian go e -
nance,” — no ices an Ame ican au ho Yale Richmond who w o e his book
in an a emp o ind a key o unde s anding he Russians and explain hese
s ange olks o he es o he wo ld (Richmond 1992: 67). Richmond me hod-
ically wen h ough di e en pe iods o Russian his o y o illus a e Russian au-
ho i a ianism: he begins wi h he Tsa dom o Moscow o he 16 h and he 17 h
cen u y whe e all he classes o he na ion we e bound o he se ice o he s a e,
and ends wi h he So ie e a wi h Moscow’s hea y hand which was ound in he

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economy, cul u e, educa ion, he media, eligion and ci izens’ p i a e li es. ‘Au-
ho i a ianism’, ‘Moscow’s hea y hand’, ‘ o ce o main ain… au ho i y’ a e bu a
ew desc ip o s ha we e used by Richmond o po ay Russian powe .
A o eign ou look may some imes p o e a bi biased. The e o e, o each a
balanced iew, i may be use ul o ake in o accoun inside s’ iewpoin s. Nu-
me ous a emp s a unde s anding and e ealing he Russians ha e been made
by na i e schola s. Acco ding o Voloshin, he explana ion o Russian s a ism
lies in he his o y and geog aphical posi ion o he coun y: Russian li e needed
s ong s a e powe which would be able o keep oge he as lands and nume -
ous peoples (Волошин 1990: 29). Sike ich dis inguishes, among o he e hnic
ea u es o he Russians, subo dina ion o an indi idual’s li e o he s a e in e -
es (Сикевич 1996), which de ini ely p esupposes he s eng h o he s a e.
The o he side o powe ela ions is he a i ude o he ollowe s o he pow-
e ul, and he e we a e app oaching he issue cen al o Ho s ede’s model. How
do he less powe ul membe s o he socie y ea he p esen dis ibu ion o
powe ? Wha a e hei expec a ions? Answe ing hese ques ions, we shall e-
u n o he Ame ican s udy e e ed o p e iously. The quo a ion om Kennan,
p o ided in Richmond’s book, seems o ha e g asped he e y essence o wo-
way powe ela ions: “Fo ms o go e nmen and he habi s o go e nmen s end
o e he long un o e lec he unde s andings and expec a ions o hei peo-
ples” (Richmond 1992: 68). Al hough we can ha dly ag ee wi h Richmond’s
gene alised cha ac e is ic o he Russian popula ion as a submissi e ci izen y
accus omed o di ec ions om abo e and unable o making hei own decisions,
he e is de ini ely a g ain o u h in his s a emen .
In he So ie e a communica ion be ween he powe ul and he ollowe s
lacked a eedback mechanism. The powe ul we e hea d by he ollowe s, bu
he ollowe s seldom had a chance o exp ess hei poin s o iew, including he
opinion on he dis ibu ion o powe . The need o he popula ion o dialogue
wi h he powe ul was appeased by demons a i e and a he andom mee ings
o So ie leade s wi h common people, which in ac esembled s age shows and
ga e he illusion o a sho powe dis ance.
Nowadays, his gen e o communica ion be ween he au ho i ies and he pop-
ula ion is gaining popula i y wi h mode n leade s. Ha ing ealised he g owing
need o Russian popula ion o he dialogue wi h he poli ical eli e and seeking
o new means o e ec i e communica ion wi h he elec o a e, he powe ul e-
sponded o a newly o med social si ua ion by exploi ing mo e dialogic gen es
and in en ing new o ms o dialogue wi h people. The e ha e appea ed new
o ms and gen es o in e ac ion be ween he powe ul and he people, aimed
a de eloping a close ela ionship and ge ing eedback om he audience: In-
e ne si es, In e ne -con e ences, ideo blogs, audio and ideo messages o he
coun y, e c. This dialogic o ien a ion is supposed o c ea e a new po ai o
he powe ul: he powe ul who a e eady o discussion, open o c i icism and,
Ideological and cul u al alues in mode n ussian poli ical discou se 113
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he e o e, close o people. In o he wo ds, he powe ul demons a e ha hey
a e open o communica e wi h he public and unde line he e icacy o demo-
c a ic p inciples, ele an o all membe s o socie y.
Democ acy p esupposes a la hie a chy, a ho izon al powe s uc u e wi h
sho e powe dis ance as compa ed o a e ical hie a chy. An appeal o demo-
c a ic alues is an adequa e li mus es o dis inguish be ween an au ho i a ian
and democ a ic s a e.
Russia’s expe ience wi h democ acy and ma ke economy has unde gone a
lo o changes, highs and lows and sudden s ops. The ad en o M. Go bache
o powe ma ks he beginning o glasnos and pe es oika. Since he new Rus-
sia began i s e o m p ocess, he e ha e been wo impo an aspec s o de elop-
men , including building he ounda ions o democ acy h ough a new poli y
o ob aining a ci il socie y, and ans o ming he economy. B. Yel sin ushe ed in
he coun y a p ocess o u he democ a iza ion as en isioned by him. Pu in as
Yel sin’s successo b ough solid economic g ow h and, as some esea che s see
i , a ollback o democ a ic igh s. Ne e heless, democ acy was i mly ins illed
in he Russian socie y as a guiding line o u he de elopmen o he coun y.
Acco ding o he de ini ion p o ided by he Me iam-Webs e Dic iona y,
he concep o democ acy implies:
1. a go e nmen by he people; especially: ule o he majo i y; b a go e nmen
in which he sup eme powe is es ed in he people and exe cised by hem di-
ec ly o indi ec ly h ough a sys em o ep esen a ion usually in ol ing pe i-
odically held ee elec ions (The Me iam-Webs e Dic iona y 1995).
In he book “The I ony o Democ acy” by Thomas R. Dye and L. Ha mon
Ziegle a b oad de ini ion o democ acy includes he ollowing poin s:
pa icipa ion by he mass o people in he decisions ha shape hei li es; go -
e nmen by majo i y ule, wi h ecogni ion o he igh s o mino i ies; eedom
o speech, p ess, and assembly; eedom o o m opposi ion poli ical pa ies
and o un o o ice; commi men o indi idual digni y and o equal oppo u-
ni ies o people o de elop hei ull po en ial (Dye, Ha mon 2008).
The de ini ion gi en by he Dic iona y o he Russian Language ende s he
ideas simila o he ones quo ed abo e (Словарь русского языка 1999).
I may be in e ed om he de ini ions ha key democ a ic alues p esuppose
low powe dis ance be ween he powe ul and he people.
Le us u n now o he ex s o P esiden ial Add ess o he Fede al Assembly
o he Russian Fede a ion. Analysis o hese ex s can gi e us a clue o he so-
lu ion o he issue and show how o en Russian leade s eso o linguis ic em-
bodimen o democ a ic alues in hei speeches, aimed a p opaga ing a new
poli y and es ablishing a close appo wi h he audience. Wha a linguis ic and
114 Ta iana Dub o skaya & Ta iana Kha lamo a
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analy ic accoun can achie e is a de ailed desc ip ion o he in e ac ion be ween
he powe ul and he public wi h he ocus on cul u al and ideological alues. I
can also show how e bal, poli ical and cul u al componen s a e combined.
As a en a i e s ep, we migh suppose ha he shi in he Russian poli ical
sys em om au ho i a ianism o democ acy is e lec ed in he choice o lexical
uni s exp essing alues o he democ a ic s a e. Le us ake a close look a he
use o he wo ds democ a ic/democ acy, independen /independence, equal/equali y,
ee/ eedom, esponsible/ esponsibili y, anspa en / anspa ency, which indica e
basic e e ence poin s o a democ a ic socie y. The i s ou wo ds a e embed-
ded in he de ini ion o democ acy i sel , while esponsibili y p esupposes ha
he powe ul should epo o he people ying o build up a anspa en socie y.
The quan i a i e analysis o he da a gi en shows ha e e ence o democ a ic
alues is essen ial o he add esses o B. Yel sin, who widely uses he wo ds de-
moc acy/democ a ic, independen /independence, ee/ eedom, esponsible/ esponsi-
bili y. As i is seen om he able, B. Yel sin eso s o democ a ic alues a he
beginning and he e y end o his enu e mainly ocusing on democ acy, ee-
dom and esponsibili y.
The 90-s was he pe iod when new ideological iews we e ins illed in o he
minds o people. The e bal componen is o emos in he p ocess o changing
he mindse o people. Repe i ion o he e e ence poin s o a democ a ic soci-
e y shapes a new a i ude owa ds he new poli y o he coun y.
I is also wo h men ioning ha he equency o usage o he se o hese
wo ds eached i s peak in 1994-1996, while a no iceable descen is obse ed in
1997-1998 (excep o he wo ds esponsibili y/ esponsible). Du ing he las yea
o Yel sin’s eign, he e is a new wa e o exploi ing key wo ds o democ acy. The
ex wo ks by sys ema ically epea ing democ acy/democ a ic, ee/ eedom, espon-
sible/ esponsibili y, anspa en / anspa ency. The Add ess o 1999 is a kind o a
a ewell message o he i s P esiden o Russia o he u u e gene a ion o pol-
i icians whose aim should be o suppo and de elop he inculca ed democ a ic
p inciples.
The i s add esses by V. Pu in shi he ocus o he economic g ow h and
social sphe e, s eng h and uni y o he coun y, while democ a ic alues ecede
in o he backg ound:
Ou s a egic ask o e he las yea was o s eng hen he s a e in he o m
o i s ins i u ions and all he le els o powe . I was clea ha wi hou esol -
ing his key issue we would no achie e success ei he in he economy o in
he social sphe e.
Ideological and cul u al alues in mode n ussian poli ical discou se 115
ISSN 1132-0265 Philologia Hispalensis 26/1-2 (2012) 107-127
able 1. Re e ence o democ a ic alues by Russian leade s
p esiden ial
add ess o he
ede al coun-
cil (numbe o
wo ds)
democ a ic/
democ acy
independen /
independence
equali y/ equal
ee/ eedom
Responsible/
esponsibili y
anspa en /
anspa ency
Yel sin, 1994
(15755)
42 14 1 38 20 7
Yel sin, 1995
(20642)
34 15 4 35 14 15
Yel sin, 1996
(12634)
33 10 3 42 18 5
Yel sin, 1997
(13611)
3 4 1 10 30 7
Yel sin, 1998
(14799)
6 8 5 10 25 9
Yel sin, 1999
(20920)
20 7 5 29 37 12
Pu in, 2000
(3876)
9 2 3 7 10 2
Pu in, 2001
(5921)
1 1 1 6 4 5
Pu in, 2002
(5686)
1 2 - 5 4 2
Pu in, 2003
(6058)
4 1 2 7 6 5
Pu in, 2004
(5208)
8 2 2 9 5 4
Pu in, 2005
(5212)
23 6 4 12 4 4
Pu in, 2006
(6533)
2 1 1 2 5 2
Pu in, 2007
(8036)
8 - 1 3 8 4
Med ede ,
2008 (8492)
26 5 2 29 14 4
Med ede ,
2009 (9826)
8 1 4 10 - 10
122 Ta iana Dub o skaya & Ta iana Kha lamo a
ISSN 1132-0265 Philologia Hispalensis 26/1-2 (2012) 107-127
Which o he alues do he mode n leade s p each: wes e n indi idualism, Rus-
sian sobo nos whe e e e y indi idual is a aluable pa o a communi y, o
collec i ism wi h a g oup as a p ima y en i y? To wha ex en , i any, a e cul-
u al alues as unconscious en i ies ans o med in o ideologies as conscious
di ec i es?
To answe hese ques ions, we shall ‘ il e ’ ou linguis ic exp essions ha se
up he ecu ing discou se e e en s.
Ou assump ion is ha in he indi idualis ic cul u e discou se is pene a ed
by he ‘I-line’ as he p onoun I is a means o s uc u ing pe sonal iden i y: 1 pe s.
sg. p onoun is used o exp ess one’s poin o iew, o desc ibe pe sonal expe i-
ence and a i ude owa ds di e en issues. The collec i is cul u e p esupposes
minimal use o pe sonal iden i y ma ke s and ocuses on la ge en i ies, such as
socie y, people, na ion, e c. Le us p oceed on his hypo he ical assump ion. In
able 4 we p esen he esul s o quan i a i e analysis o a ious lexical nomina-
ions used o e e o di e en membe s and g oups o he socie y.
As we can see in able 4, Russian leade s o en eso o using he p onoun I,
bu he p onoun we p edomina es in he analysed discou se. The ex wo ks by
s eadily epea ing he p onouns we/ou . Bo h Pu in and Med ede e e mainly
o he coun y, s a e, people, ci izens, whe eas de ini e g oups (s uden s, young
people, se icemen, eache s, e c.) a e ep esen ed by isola ed ins ances.
Wha is no ewo hy abou Med ede ’s ex s is no only ecu ence o e e -
ences o di e en agen s, bu also he ex en o which hese agen s a e o e ly
speci ied. The e is a conside able inc ease in he use o he p onoun I and e e -
ences o an indi idual, which can be e idence o a shi owa ds a mo e indi id-
ualized app oach in add essing he public and o pu suing a mo e libe al policy:
The cul o he s a e and he illuso y wisdom o he adminis a i e appa a us
ha e p e ailed in Russia o e many cen u ies. Indi iduals wi h hei igh s and
eedoms, pe sonal in e es s and p oblems ha e been seen as a bes a means
and a wo s an obs acle o s eng hening he s a e’s migh . This iew endu ed
h oughou many cen u ies. <…>
This is why he adop ion in 1993 o a Cons i u ion p oclaiming he in-
di idual, hei li e, igh s and p ope y as he highes alue was an unp ece-
den ed e en in Russia’s his o y, and we should hank all hose who ook pa
in d a ing and adop ing his documen . (Med ede , 2008);
Th ough ou join e o s, no only will ou li ing s anda ds show eal im-
p o emen bu we ou sel es will change oo. We need o o e come he wide-
sp ead iew ha esponsibili y o so ing ou all p oblems lies wi h he s a e
o wi h whoe e else, bu no wi h each o us pe sonally. Pe sonal success, en-
cou agemen o ini ia i e, a be e quali y o public discussion, and ze o ole -
ance o co up ion should become pa o ou na ional cul u e, an in insic pa
o who we a e. (Med ede , 2009).

Ideological and cul u al alues in mode n ussian poli ical discou se 123
ISSN 1132-0265 Philologia Hispalensis 26/1-2 (2012) 107-127
able 4. Linguis ic means o add essing o di e en membe s o socie y
pu in, 2002
(5686)
pu in, 2004
(5208)
pu in, 2006
(6533)
med ede ,
2008 (8492)
med ede ,
2009 (9826)
i/my 12 5 11 30 54
We/ou 104 98 142 159 219
You/you 9 1 19 9 4
coun y
s a e
16
8
26
16
28
15
25
24
42
18
Russia 24 32 33 12 40
people
popu-
la ion
na ion
ci izens
13
10
-
24
32
6
1
23
13
1
-
9
36
3
6
30
37
8
2
17
socie y 3 11 6 23 17
amily 1 6 16 3 5
You h/
young
- 4 10 2 10
child en 2 2 8 3 10
s uden s 2 1 - - -
e e yone/
e e y
pe son
1
-
4
7
-
-
10
15
6
5
The example gi en abo e p o ides a di ec answe o he ques ion on wha
Russia is seeking o — i is sobo nos , whe e e e y pe son is an insepa able and
meaning ul pa o a communi y.
Ne e heless, he coun y’s in e es s a e o u mos impo ance, which also
cons i u es a ypical cha ac e is ic o he gen e o P esiden ial Add ess:
Second, we need o wo k ha d o p o ec he uniqueness o ou coun y’s cul-
u e in all i s di e si y, o help p ese e he ich e hnic adi ions o Rus-
sia’s peoples, and a he same ime de elop and imp o e Russian language
124 Ta iana Dub o skaya & Ta iana Kha lamo a
ISSN 1132-0265 Philologia Hispalensis 26/1-2 (2012) 107-127
p og ammes, which se e as he basis o communica ion and uni y in ou
coun y (Med ede , 2009).
Gi en his e idence, i can be seen ha mode n p esiden ial discou se elies
on adi ional Russian alues: appeals o communal spi i help he powe ul o
emphasize he impo ance o he coun y’s in e es . Howe e , along wi h p op-
aga ing collec i e pu poses, he alue o an indi idual is being s essed, which
can be in e p e ed as an a emp o inculca e new ideologies in he socie y a e
a long pe iod o So ie collec i ism.
5. conclusIon
The analysis o poli ical discou se ca ied ou in he p esen pape has sup-
po ed ou assump ion ha poli ical ideologies can be based upon adi ional
cul u al alues, and oge he wi h language hese en i ies o m a ipa i e uni y.
Ho s ede’s heo y o cul u al dimensions appea s o be an e icien ame-
wo k o cha ac e izing cul u al and ideological space o he mode n Russia.
Focusing a en ion on wo p incipal dimensions ha a e essen ial o unde -
s anding powe ela ions (Powe Dis ance, Indi idualism s. Collec i ism), we
ha e singled ou a numbe o p incipal ideologically meaning ul concep s in
speeches o Russian p esiden s, which embody a new poli y and alues in o-
duced in he socie y. The e idence seems o be s ong ha he e is a gap be ween
newly inculca ed democ a ic p inciples and adi ionally high powe dis ance.
In ou opinion, Ho s ede’s linea scale “Indi idualism s. Collec i ism” has
ce ain limi a ions and canno accommoda e he Russian adi ional concep o
‘sobo nos ’ which uni es p opaga ing communal in e es s and, simul aneously,
he alue o an indi idual. Bo h elemen s o sobo nos can be disco e ed in
Russian p esiden ial discou se, which p o es once again ha he powe ul eso
o adi ional cul u al alues when a emp ing a in oducing ce ain ideologies.
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acKnoWledgemen s
We a e indeb ed o D . Isabel Iñigo-Mo a who in i ed us o pa icipa e in
he olume and p o ided necessa y suppo du ing he p ocess o p epa ing he
pape .
Ideological and cul u al alues in mode n ussian poli ical discou se 127
ISSN 1132-0265 Philologia Hispalensis 26/1-2 (2012) 107-127
Many hanks also go o P o . Jim Bu e ield who ook he ouble o become
ou olun ee ing edi o and whose commen s on he con en s and help as o he
English language use a e mos app ecia ed. We a e, o cou se, esponsible o
any su i ing d awbacks.