Russia and the West: the problem of positioning in cultural, historical, and geopolitical contexts
Research Article
How to Cite
Polomoshnov A.F., Agapova E.A., Bakulov V.D. Russia and the West: the problem of positioning in cultural, historical, and geopolitical contexts. Humanities of the South of Russia. 2026. Vol. 15. No. 2. P. 181-194. DOI: https://doi.org/10.18522/2227-8656.2026.2.14 (in Russ.).
Abstract
Objective of the study is to examine the images of Russia and the West in cultural and historical contexts.
Methodological basis of the study is grounded on civilizational and sociocultural approaches, as well as the method of historical generalizations in geopolitical analysis.
Results of the study. The article examines the images of Russia and the West created within the framework of academic and public discourse. It is established that the image of Russia created by the West is predominantly negative: Russia is positioned, firstly, as a backward and alien model of civilizational development; secondly, as an existential threat and, simultaneously, a victim of the West. Russia's image of the West is characterized by ambivalence, demonstrating a shift from a positive representation (the West as a partner in equal cooperation and guarantor of peaceful coexistence) to a negative one (the West as an existential geopolitical adversary and aggressor). The specifics of relations between Russia and the West are also examined from a historical perspective, serving as the basis for constructing these images.
Prospects of the study. The imbalances in the mutual images of Russia and the West identified in this article, reflecting the specific historical relations between Russian and Western civilizations, raise the need for a more in-depth study of the problem of positioning Russia and the West in terms of the balance of their geopolitical interests.
Keywords:
Russia, the West, aggression, cooperation, sociocultural borrowings, image of Russia, image of the West, Slavophiles, Westernizers
References
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Danilevsky, N. Ya. Russia and Europe: A Look at the Cultural and Political Relations of the Slavic World to the Germanic-Roman World. M.: In-t russkoy tsivilizatsii = Moscow: Izvestia. 2003; 607 p.
Zinoviev, A. A. The West. Moscow: Centerpoligraf. 2000; 509 p.
Igritsky, Yu. I. Russia versus Russia, West versus West. Rossiya i sovremennyy mir = Russia and the Modern World. 2002; 3(36): 5-30.
Ilyin, I. A. On the Coming Russia: Selected Articles. Dzhordanvill: Sovmestnoye izdaniye Svyato-Troitskogo monastyrya i korporatsii Teleks, SSHA = Jordanville: Joint Publication of Holy Trinity Monastery and Telex Corporation, USA, 1991; 365 p.
Kortunov, S.V. National Identity: Understanding the Meaning. Moskva: Aspect Press = Moscow: Aspect Press. 2009; 589 p.
Mettan, G. West-Russia: A Thousand-Year War. The History of Russophobia from King Kral the Great to the Ukrainian Crisis. M: Paulsen. 2016; 232 p.
Pantin, V.I. Russia and the West in the 2020s: Prospects for Geopolitical Revolution. Istoriya i sovremennost = History and Modernity. 2021;1(39): 28-53.
Platonov, O. A. Russian Civilization. History and Ideology of the Russian People. Moscow: Algorithm, 2010. 944 p.
Polomoshnov, A. F. Russia and the West: Lessons of History. Gumanitarnyy vestnik Donskogo gosudarstvennogo agrarnogo universiteta = Humanitarian Bulletin of the Don State Agrarian University. 2022. No. 2. pp. 66-87.
Safonov, V. N. Russia and the West. Vestnik Yekaterininskogo instituta = Bulletin of the Catherine Institute. 2014; 2(26):143-148.
Shambarov, V. E. Russia and the West. Why Will We Win? M.: Rodina = Moscow: Rodina. 2021; 320 p.
Yakovenko, I. G. Understanding Russia: A Civilizational Analysis. M.: Znaniye = Moscow: Knowledge. 2017; 642 p.
Article
Received: 15.01.2026
Accepted: 24.04.2026
Citation Formats
Other cite formats:
APA
Polomoshnov, A. F., Agapova, E. A., & Bakulov, V. D. (2026). Russia and the West: the problem of positioning in cultural, historical, and geopolitical contexts. Humanities of the South of Russia, 15(2), 181-194. https://doi.org/10.18522/2227-8656.2026.2.14
Section
CULTURE, MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION
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