subjected to the heavy-handed rule of an authoritarian, centralized government
headed by an autocratic, often despotic“tsar.”^33 The revolution replaced the tsarist
rulers with a Soviet regime but brought little improvement to ordinary Russians’
lives. It was not until 1991, when the Communist Party lost power, that the Russian
peoples achieved a democratic government. However, the current government under
President Putin has become increasingly authoritarian.
These experiences instilled traits that enabled the Russians to accept the diktats of
their leaders and endure incredible hardship. One of the most vivid recent examples
of the Russians being dominated by harsh, authoritarian rule had its beginning in the
1917 Bolshevik Revolution, which was supposed to overturn the oppressive tsarist
regime, eliminate economic inequities, and give the working class a voice. Instead,
much of the country was destroyed and the entire sociocultural structure was changed
in the name of Communism. Joseph Stalin’s program of state agricultural and indus-
trial collectivization brought added turmoil to the Russian populace. Under his rule,
“Millions died in the political purges, the vast penal and labor system, or in state-
created famines.”^34 World War II resulted in more suffering when some 27 million
Soviet citizens perished in the struggle against fascist Germany.^35 In 1991, due to eco-
nomic stagnation and wide popular demand for greater freedom, the repressive Com-
munist system collapsed and was replaced by the Russian Federation, an independent
nation. From this sketch of Russian political history, it is easy to understand why
Bergelson says that even today, many Russians feel they have“no control over the
world.”^36 The long legacy of centralized, repressive rule and unwarranted suffering
has imparted a sense of fatalism that has become a part of Russian culture.
The Russian historical tradition is also marked by a deep appreciation of and devo-
tion to the arts. During the tenth century, Greek Orthodox Christianity, imported
from the Byzantine Empire, became the state religion. Consequently, “Byzantine
Christianity has had a profound and permanent effect on Russian civilization,”and
its legacy can be seen in Russia’s architectural, musical, and artistic heritage.^37 Even
today, the performing and cultural arts form an integral part of Russian life. Since its
inception in the early 1700s, the world-famous Bolshoi Ballet has been a source of
great pride and an object of esteem among all Russians. Classical music by Tchai-
kovsky, Rachmaninoff, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Stravinsky is admired and enjoyed
throughout the world. In the field of literature, Russia has produced such literary
giants as Chekhov, Dostoevsky, Gogol, Pushkin, and Tolstoy, and five Russian
authors have been awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature—Ivan Bunin (1933),
Boris Pasternak (1958), Mikhail Sholohov (1965), Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1970),
and, most recently, Joseph Brodsky (1987). A contemporary illustration of the
important role of the cultural arts in Russian life is the Primorsky Opera and Ballet
Theater, which opened in 2013. This seven-story modern, almost futuristic structure
is located in Vladivostok, a somewhat isolated city of just over half a million inhabi-
tants located almost four thousand miles east of Moscow on a small peninsula jutting
into the Sea of Japan.
Although over two decades have passed since the collapse of communist rule, Rus-
sia remains in transition. With very little prior experience of democracy or capitalism
to draw on, Russia has encountered many problems in adapting to the international
order. Following the establishment of the federation in 1991, Russia was in turmoil
until Vladimir Putin became president in 1999. He quickly moved to consolidate
and centralize political and economic power over the entire country. In an early
speech, Putin acknowledged people’s universal values but also asserted three distinctly170 CHAPTER 5•Cultural History: Precursor to the Present and Future
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