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Memories about “the Hard 1990s” as a Resource for Adaptation to the New Turbulence: The Analysis of the Russian Media

Author

Listed:
  • Olga Yu. Malinova

    (National Research University Higher School of Economics)

Abstract

The paper contributes to better understanding of public perceptions of the new reality emerging after the entry of Russia’s troops in Ukraine on February 24, 2022 and the unprecedented retaliatory sanctions from the West. It focuses on how the memories about the traumatic experience of the 1990s were activated to manage the new turbulence and uncertainty. Based on publications of the printed and electronic media in February-August, 2022, through the qualitative content analysis conducted in the MAXQDA app, the paper reveals typical patterns of framing the connections between “then” and “now”. The author argues that memories turned to be an essential symbolic resource for making sense of the new reality, as soon as the latter displayed many analogies with the past traumatic experience. It finds that the activation of memories about the 1990s was largely based on the established frames of remembrance that became re-interpreted in the new context. In particular, the past experience of “hard times” that had been overcome provides confidence that the current situation is manageable. At the same time, a dangerous proliferation of a xenophobic discourse proposing then eradication of a liberal “fifth column” was detected.

Suggested Citation

  • Olga Yu. Malinova, 2023. "Memories about “the Hard 1990s” as a Resource for Adaptation to the New Turbulence: The Analysis of the Russian Media," HSE Working papers WP BRP 90/PS/2023, National Research University Higher School of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hig:wpaper:90/ps/2023
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    File URL: https://wp.hse.ru/data/2023/04/26/2028052861/90PS2023.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Edwin Bacon, 2012. "Public Political Narratives: Developing a Neglected Source through the Exploratory Case of Russia in the Putin-Medvedev Era," Political Studies, Political Studies Association, vol. 60(4), pages 768-786, December.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Collective memory; frames of remembrance; the hard 1990s; public discourse;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • Z - Other Special Topics

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