The Origin,Evolution And Influence Of Contemporary Russian Conservatism(1991-2021)

Since the end of the Cold War,the structural changes that have taken place in the international order have been paralleled by an undercurrent of different political and social currents that have competed with each other,which have a particularly wide range of effects,ranging from moral and cultural conflicts to geopolitics and the construction of a new world order.The typical case of the revival of conservatism in contemporary Russia is very representative.On the whole,as a political ideology and cultural worldview phenomenon,Russian conservatism possesses unique value judgments or theoretical assumptions,as well as a complex process of historical dynamic evolution and a rich variety of contemporary manifestations.In terms of the former,Russian conservatism has its own unique core concepts and expressive features at the main structural levels of socio-philosophical knowledge such as ontology,epistemology,methodology,and axiology,such as traditionalism,transcendental hierarchical order,historicism,and organism,etc.In terms of the latter,it is characterized by fracture but at the same time exhibits distinctive features of continuity and diversification.Since the beginning of the 19th century,Russian conservatism has gone through various stages of development,and its theoretical doctrines have gradually matured,thus laying the theoretical foundations for its unique program of political and sociocultural development.However,this tradition of thought tended to fade into oblivion for most of the twentieth century,until the post-Soviet period saw a revival of Russian conservatism was revived and presented in a pluralistic approach.Taken together,the revival or turn of Russian conservatism at the present time is the result of the interweaving and interaction of internal and external factors.It is not only inevitably related to the results of Russia’s modernization transformation in the post-Soviet era,but is also inextricably linked to the process and prospect of the international and regional order transformation in the more than 30 years since the end of the Cold War.The ideas that Russian conservatives advocate for the construction of national or civilizational identity,as well as their reflections on their own geopolitical positioning and the construction of a global order,highlight the hidden dynamics behind this ideological shift.Moreover,the revival of contemporary Russian conservatism is not merely a manifestation of instrumentalist logic dictated by regime goals,but is characterized by a “two-way interaction” between different types of actors.Specifically,the growth and development of Russian conservatism cannot be separated from the “top-down” support of the state power centers,but at the same time it is inseparable from the knowledge networks of non-state actors involved in the production,dissemination,and competition of conservative narratives,such as intellectuals,discussion clubs,think tanks,or foundations.For example,think tanks such as the Institute of Socio-Economic and Political Studies and the Izborsk Club,as well as the Orthodox Church,have played a key role in the development of conservative thought in contemporary Russia.In contrast to the moderate conservatism of the Institute of Socio-Economic and Political Studies,the social conservatism advocated by the Izborsk Club is more radical.The ideas and programs of various types of conservative actors in different fields are different and even contradictory.Among them,a typical example is the geopolitical ideas of isolationism,exceptionalism and Neo-Eurasianism,which are closely associated with Russian conservative thinkers.From a global perspective,Russia’s conservative turn has become an important part of the current dramatic shifts in global trends of thought.Its advocacy of the discourse of “traditional values” and its efforts to build a traditionalist or conservative international alliance,as well as its vigilance to and criticism of the postmodern processes of “dehumanization,desocialization,and de-sovereignization” led by the Western world,are of great practical significance in understanding the severe challenges to the foundations of modern human civilization.At the same time,however,the discourse on traditional values has been accompanied by negative effects such as the further sharpening of value conflicts or oppositions.