Typical character traits of the Russian people. Characteristic features of the Russian national character

We are Russians...
What a delight!
A.V. Suvorov

Reflections on the character of the Russian people lead us to the conclusion that the character of the people and the character of an individual do not have a direct correlation. The people are a conciliar, symphonic personality, therefore it is hardly possible to detect in every Russian person all the features and properties of the Russian national character. In general, in the Russian character one can see the qualities of Peter the Great, Prince Myshkin, Oblomov and Khlestakov, i.e. both positive and negative properties. There are no peoples on earth who have only positive or only negative character traits. In reality, there is a known relationship between both. Only in the assessment of some peoples by others does a false idea arise, giving rise to stereotypes and myths, that another (not our) people has mainly negative character traits. And, on the contrary, there is a desire to attribute all sorts of positive characteristics to the superlative degree to one’s own people.

In the character of the Russian people, such properties as patience, national fortitude, conciliarity, generosity, immensity (breadth of soul), and talent are often noted. BUT. Lossky, in his book “The Character of the Russian People,” begins his study with such a trait of the Russian character as religiosity. “The main, deepest character trait of the Russian people is their religiosity, and the search for absolute good associated with it... which is feasible only in the Kingdom of God,” he writes. “Perfect good without any admixture of evil and imperfections exists in the Kingdom of God because it consists of individuals who fully implement in their behavior the two commandments of Jesus Christ: to love God more than yourself, and your neighbor as yourself. Members of the Kingdom of God are completely free from selfishness and therefore they create only absolute values ​​- moral goodness, beauty, knowledge of truth, benefits that are indivisible and indestructible, serving the whole world" [ 1 ].

Lossky puts emphasis on the word “search” for absolute good, thereby he does not absolutize the properties of the Russian people, but seeks to designate their spiritual aspirations. Therefore, in the history of Russia, thanks to the influence of the great holy ascetics, the ideal of the people became not powerful, not rich, but “Holy Rus'”. Lossky cites the insightful remark of I.V. Kireevsky, that in comparison with the businesslike, almost theatrical behavior of Europeans, one is surprised by the humility, calmness, restraint, dignity and inner harmony of people who grew up in the traditions of the Russian Orthodox Church. Even many generations of Russian atheists, instead of Christian religiosity, showed formal religiosity, a fanatical desire to realize on earth a kind of kingdom of God without God, on the basis of scientific knowledge and universal equality. “Considering that the main property of the Russian people is Christian religiosity and the search for absolute good associated with it,” wrote Lossky, “in the following chapters I will try to explain some other properties of the Russian people in connection with this essential feature of their character” [ 2 ].

Lossky calls such derived traits of the Russian character the ability to higher forms of experience, feeling and will (powerful willpower, passion, maximalism), love of freedom, kindness, giftedness, messianism and missionism. At the same time, he also names negative traits associated with the lack of the middle area of ​​culture - fanaticism, extremism, which manifested themselves in the Old Believers, nihilism and hooliganism. It should be noted that Lossky, when analyzing the features of the Russian national character, has in mind the thousand-year experience of the existence of the Russian people and in fact does not give assessments related to the trends characteristic of the Russian character in the 20th century. For us, what is important in Lossky’s works is the basic feature of the national character, the dominant that determines all other properties and sets the vector for the analysis of the problem posed.

Modern researchers of this topic take more into account the trends in the development of the Russian national character of the 20th century, without denying the tradition that, over the course of the thousand-year history of Russia and the Russian people, has shaped these properties. So, V.K. Trofimov in the book “The Soul of the Russian People” writes: “Acquaintance with the national-physical and spiritual determinants of the psychological properties of the Russian people allows us to identify the fundamental internal qualities of national psychology. These fundamental qualities, which constitute the essence of national psychology and the national character of the Russian people, can be designated as the essential forces of the Russian souls" [ 3 ].

Among the essential forces he considers the paradoxical nature of mental manifestations (the inconsistency of the Russian soul), contemplation with the heart (the primacy of feeling and contemplation over reason and reason), the immensity of life's impulse (the breadth of the Russian soul), the religious desire for the absolute, national resilience, “We-psychology” and love of freedom. “The essential forces inherent in the deep foundations of the Russian soul are extremely contradictory in the possible consequences of their practical implementation. They can become a source of creation in economics, politics and culture. In the hands of a wise national elite, for centuries the emerging features of national psychology served prosperity, strengthening of power and Russia's authority in the world" [ 4 ].

F.M. Dostoevsky, long before Berdyaev and Lossky, showed how the character of the Russian people combines the base and the sublime, the holy and the sinful, the “ideal of Madonna” and the “ideal of Sodom,” and the battlefield of these principles is the human heart. In Dmitry Karamazov’s monologue, the extremes and boundless breadth of the Russian soul are expressed with exceptional force: “Moreover, I cannot bear that another person, even higher in heart and with a lofty mind, begins with the ideal of the Madonna, and ends with the ideal of Sodom. It is even more terrible who is already with "The ideal of Sodom in his soul does not deny the ideal of the Madonna, and his heart burns from it and truly, truly burns, as in his young, blameless years. No, the man is broad, too broad, I would narrow it" [ 5 ].

The consciousness of their sinfulness gives the Russian people the ideal of spiritual ascent. Characterizing Russian literature, Dostoevsky emphasizes that all the timeless and beautiful images in the works of Pushkin, Goncharov and Turgenev were borrowed from the Russian people. They took from him simplicity, purity, meekness, intelligence and gentleness, in contrast to everything that was broken, false, superficial and slavishly borrowed. And this contact with the people gave them extraordinary strength.

Dostoevsky highlights another fundamental need of the Russian people - the need for constant and insatiable suffering, everywhere and in everything. He has been infected with this thirst for suffering from time immemorial; a stream of suffering runs through its entire history, not only from external misfortunes and disasters, but wells up from the very heart of the people. For the Russian people, even in happiness there is certainly a part of suffering, otherwise happiness for them is incomplete. Never, even in the most solemn moments of his history, does he have a proud and triumphant look, but only a look of tenderness to the point of suffering; he sighs and lifts up his glory to the mercy of the Lord. This idea of ​​Dostoevsky found clear expression in his formula: “Whoever does not understand Orthodoxy will never understand Russia.”

Truly, our shortcomings are a continuation of our strengths. The polarities of the Russian national character can be represented as a whole series of antinomies expressing positive and negative properties.

1. breadth of soul - absence of form;
2. generosity - wastefulness;
3. love of freedom - weak discipline (anarchism);
4. prowess - revelry;
5. patriotism - national egoism.

These parallels can be increased many times over. I.A. Bunin gives a significant parable in “Cursed Days”. The peasant says: the people are like wood, from it you can make both an icon and a club, depending on who processes this wood - Sergius of Radonezh or Emelka Pugachev [ 6 ].

Many Russian poets sought to express the total immensity of the Russian national character, but A.K. succeeded especially fully in this. Tolstoy:

If you love, so without reason,
If you threaten, it’s not a joke,
If you scold, so rashly,
If you chop, it’s too bad!

If it's too bold to argue,
If you punish, that's the point,
If you forgive, then with all your heart,
If there is a feast, then there is a feast!

I.A. Ilyin draws attention to the fact that immensity for a Russian person is a living concrete reality, his object, his starting point, his task. “Such is the Russian soul: it is given passion and power; form, character and transformation are its historically vital tasks.” Among Western analysts of the Russian national character, these features were most successfully expressed by the German thinker W. Schubart. The greatest interest in contrasting two diametrically opposed types of worldview - Western (Promethean) and Russian (Johnnian) - is a number of positions proposed by Schubart for comparison, which are saturated with diverse specific material. Let's reproduce one of them. The culture of the middle and the culture of the end. Western culture is the culture of the middle. Socially it rests on the middle class, psychologically on the mental state of the middle, balance. Her virtues are self-control, good manners, efficiency, discipline. “The European is a decent and diligent, skilled worker, a flawlessly functioning cog in a large mechanism. Outside his profession, he is hardly taken into account. He prefers the path of the golden mean, and this is usually the path to gold.” Materialism and philistinism are the goal and result of Western culture.

The Russian moves within the framework of a peripheral culture. Hence the breadth and immensity of the Russian soul, the feeling of freedom right up to anarchism and nihilism; feelings of guilt and sinfulness; an apocalyptic worldview and, finally, sacrifice as the central idea of ​​Russian religious morality. “Foreigners who came to Russia for the first time,” wrote Schubart, “could not get rid of the impression that they found themselves in a sacred place, set foot on holy land... The expression “Holy Rus'” is not an empty phrase. A traveler in Europe is immediately carried away by the noisy rhythm its active forces; the high melody of labor reaches his ears, but this - with all its greatness and power - is a song about the earth" [ 7 ].

However, a simple listing of certain qualities of the Russian national character will be very incomplete or haphazardly redundant. Therefore, in further analysis, one should take a different path: to determine sufficient grounds (criteria) according to which it is possible to summarize the characteristics of the Russian character. In modern scientific literature, there has long been a discussion about what is the determining principle in the study of national identity: “blood and soil”, or “language and culture”. And, although most researchers pay attention to language and culture, nevertheless, the national genotype and natural and climatic conditions are directly related to the formation of the qualities and properties of the national character.

In my opinion, the following basic factors should be considered as the initial formative foundations of the Russian national character:

1. Nature and climate;
2. Ethnic origins;
3. The historical existence of the people and the geopolitical position of Russia;
4. Social factors (monarchy, community, multi-ethnicity);
5. Russian language and Russian culture;
6. Orthodoxy.

This order is not at all accidental. The analysis of factors should begin with external, material, physical and climatic ones, and end with spiritual, deep ones, defining the dominant character of the national character. It is the religiosity of the Russian people (N.O. Lossky), rooted in Orthodox Christianity, that most researchers of this issue consider as the deep basis of the Russian character. Consequently, the order of importance of these factors is arranged in an ascending line.

Threats and challenges to the existence of national identity and Russian character undoubtedly exist. As a rule, they have objective and subjective content and greatly increase their negative impact during periods of unrest, revolutions, social breakdowns and crisis situations. The first objective trend leading to a threat to the existence of Russian national identity is associated with the collapse of the USSR (historical Russia) at the end of the 20th century; it was this tendency that called into question the very existence of the Russian people, and, consequently, their national identity. The second objective trend is associated with the “reform” of the economy, which, in fact, was a complete collapse of the economy of the entire country, the destruction of the military-industrial complex, a huge number of research institutes that had been providing priority directions for the country’s development for a number of decades. As a result, the economy of post-Soviet Russia has acquired an ugly, one-sided character - it is entirely based on the production and export of hydrocarbons (oil and gas), as well as on the export of other types of raw materials - ferrous and non-ferrous metals, wood, etc.

The third objective trend is the depopulation of the Russian people, associated with a low birth rate, a high number of abortions, low life expectancy, high mortality from road accidents, alcoholism, drug addiction, suicide and other accidents. Over the past 15 years, the population of Russia has been declining by 700-800 thousand people annually. The depopulation of the Russian people is a consequence of the above objective trends and leads to a sharp increase in migration flows, often uncontrolled, from the Caucasus, Central Asia and China. Already today, 12.5% ​​of students in Moscow schools are Azerbaijanis. If migration policy is not strictly controlled, then in the future this process will lead to the replacement of the Russian people by migrants, to the displacement and extinction of Russian national identity. Depopulation is largely a consequence of the crisis processes of the 90s. XX century.

Subjective tendencies leading to threats to the existence of Russian national identity can be summed up as a loss of identity. However, this provision requires decoding and detailing. The loss of identity is associated with the invasion of the world of Russian national self-awareness by external influences alien to the Russian person, aimed at transforming national self-awareness and Russian character according to the Western model: in the field of education - accession to the Bologna Charter; in the field of culture - replacing traditional examples of Russian culture with pop culture, pseudoculture; in the field of religion - the introduction of various sectarian movements associated with Protestantism, occult and other anti-Christian sects; in the field of art - the invasion of various avant-garde movements, emasculating the content of art; in the field of philosophy - the frontal offensive of postmodernism, which denies the originality and specificity of national thinking and tradition.

We see how diverse the ways of denying national identity are every day in various media programs. The most dangerous among them is Russophobia - denial and contempt for Russian culture, national identity and the Russian people themselves. It can be assumed that if the Russian national identity is replaced by the Western mentality that has been introduced in our country for a decade and a half, then the Russian people will turn into a “population”, into ethnographic material, and the Russian language and Russian culture, in the future, may share the fate of dead languages ​​( ancient Greek and Latin). The denationalization of culture, the suppression of national consciousness, its transformation into a comic-clip consciousness, the distortion of Russian history, the desecration of our Victory, the lulling of defense consciousness is becoming an everyday phenomenon.

The country's unfavorable economic situation, the permanent political crisis of the late 20th century, and the crime situation led to a "brain drain" - the mass emigration of scientists to other, more prosperous countries. Scientists who went abroad filled research centers and universities in the USA, Canada, Germany and other Western countries. According to the Russian Academy of Sciences, over 15 years, about 200 thousand scientists have left the country, including 130 thousand candidates of science and about 20 thousand doctors of science. In fact, this is a disaster, an almost complete loss of the country's intellectual property. Talented graduates of the best universities in Russia tend to go to rich business corporations or go abroad. This led to the loss of the middle-aged level of RAS research workers. Today, the average age of doctors of science at the Russian Academy of Sciences is 61 years. There is a “brain drain”, the steady aging and impossibility of replenishing scientific personnel, the disappearance of a number of leading scientific schools, and the degradation of scientific research topics [ 8 ].

How can we counteract these negative trends leading to the erosion of Russian national identity?

Firstly, we need a balanced program (ideology) for a long-term historical perspective, which must correspond to the national interests of Russia, take into account the limits of national security in the development of Russian culture, school and university education, science, and the protection of the moral, religious, and ethnic values ​​of the people. At the same time, such an ideological program should outline the prospects for the development of the economy, agriculture, military-industrial complex and other spheres of production that could ensure the independence of our country at the proper level. The so-called “national projects” developed and implemented by the administration of President D.A. Medvedev, are very fragmented and do not have the character of a universal national program. As I.A. wrote Ilyin, Russia does not need class hatred or party struggle, tearing apart its single body, it needs a responsible idea for the long term. Moreover, the idea is not destructive, but positive, state-owned. This is the idea of ​​cultivating a national spiritual character in the Russian people. “This idea must be state-historical, state-national, state-patriotic, state-religious. This idea must come from the very fabric of the Russian soul and Russian history, from their spiritual integrity. This idea must speak about the main thing in Russian destinies - and past and future; it should shine for entire generations of Russian people, making sense of their lives, pouring cheerfulness into them" [ 9 ]. Today there is already experience in developing such promising programs [ 10 ].

Secondly, it is necessary to educate the Russian national elite, whose aspirations would correspond to the national interests of Russia and the Russian people. The foreign and heterodox elite will always push the country either to another revolution (in essence, to a redistribution of power and property), or, in the words of F.M. Dostoevsky, will once every few decades “let go of a convulsion,” i.e. carry out the next crisis situation. As the experience of the tragic 90s for Russia shows. XX century, such an elite - the "Chicago boys" - was directed and controlled by external forces hostile to Russia, contrary to the national interests of the country.

Thirdly, it is necessary to educate new generations of Russian people in the spirit of love for the Motherland, in the spirit of patriotism, and this requires a fundamental restructuring of the entire system of education and upbringing. Only in this case can the negative consequences of modern national nihilism and Russophobia be overcome. “The Pepsi generation”, brought up under the motto - “Take everything from life!” is a social product of the destructive processes of the 90s.

Fourthly, it is necessary to fight the negative features of the Russian national character - anarchism and extremism, disorganization and “hoping for chance”, lack of formality and hooliganism, apathy and loss of the habit of systematic work, which was largely the result of the crisis of the last year and a half decades. This struggle should not be waged through “outbursts of revolutionary spirit,” but through the development of persistent self-discipline, continuous self-control, patience and endurance, spiritual sobriety and obedience. S.N. Bulgakov spoke about Christian asceticism, which is continuous self-control, the fight against the lower sinful sides of one’s self, asceticism of the spirit. Only on this path can the negative tendencies of the Russian national character be neutralized to some extent, which in an era of historical unrest lead to the destruction of the essential forces of the people, when the “underground of the human soul” comes to the fore. When a people is on the verge (and even beyond) of physical existence, it is difficult to demand adherence to highly moral behavior from them. This requires measures of a social, political, economic nature, but, above all, spiritual ones. Only in this case is there hope for a successful, positive result in the development of Russia, the Russian people and their national identity.

If the Russian people have sufficient national and social immunity, then they will again return to their own national identity. Historical experience gives us sufficient grounds for an optimistic scenario for the development of events. Russia and the Russian people overcame the most difficult situations and found a worthy Answer to the Challenge of History. Such an analysis of the Russian national character by Dostoevsky, who revealed the deepest contradictions, gives hope that the abyss of fall in which the Russian people find themselves today will sober them up, and they will overcome the stage of yet another self-destruction, going through repentance and suffering.

Here the question involuntarily arises: how did the Russian people, who have positive qualities along with negative ones, become seduced at the beginning of the 20th century? ideas of the revolutionary reorganization of Russia and atheism, which resulted in regicide, destruction of churches, renunciation of the faith of their ancestors and impoverishment of the people's soul. We find the answer to this question in Dostoevsky. For a Russian person, in his opinion, it is typical to forget every measure in everything. Whether it is love, wine, revelry, pride, envy - here some Russian people give themselves up almost selflessly, ready to break everything, renounce everything, family, custom, God. “This is the need to reach over the edge, the need for a frozen sensation, having reached the abyss, hanging halfway into it, looking into the very abyss and - in special cases, but very often - throwing yourself into it like a crazy person upside down.

This is the need for denial in a person, sometimes the most non-denying and reverent, the denial of everything, the most important shrine of his heart, the most complete ideal of his, the entire people's shrine in all its fullness, which now he was only in awe of and which suddenly seemed to have become unbearable to him somehow a burden, - this is how Dostoevsky characterizes the traits of self-denial and self-destruction characteristic of the Russian folk character. - But with the same strength, the same swiftness, with the same thirst for self-preservation and repentance, the Russian man, as well as the entire people, saves himself, and usually when he reaches the last line, that is, when there is nowhere else to go. But what is especially characteristic is that the reverse impulse, the impulse of self-restoration and self-salvation, is always more serious than the previous impulse - the impulse of self-denial and self-destruction. That is, it always happens on the account of petty cowardice; whereas the Russian person goes into restoration with the most enormous and serious effort, and looks at the negative previous movement with contempt for himself" [ 11 ].

In conclusion, let us once again turn to the listing of the main features of the Russian national character. The natural and climatic conditions of Russia have formed such traits in the character of the Russian people as patience, endurance, generous nature, and hard work. This is where the passionarity and “native” character of the people come from. The multi-ethnicity and multi-confessional nature of Russia have instilled in the Russian people brotherhood, patience (tolerance) towards other languages ​​and cultures, selflessness, and the absence of violence. The historical existence of the Russian people and the geopolitical position of Russia forged in its character such properties as national resilience, love of freedom, sacrifice, and patriotism. The social conditions of existence of the Russian people - the monarchy, the community - contributed to the formation of a monarchical sense of justice, conciliarity, collectivism, and mutual assistance. Orthodoxy, as the main dominant of Russian national identity, formed in the Russian people religiosity, the desire for absolute goodness, love for one’s neighbor (brotherhood), humility, meekness, awareness of one’s sinfulness and imperfection, sacrifice (readiness to give one’s life for one’s friends), conciliarity and patriotism. These qualities were formed in accordance with the gospel ideals of goodness, truth, mercy and compassion. In this we must see the religious source of Russian fortitude and patience, endurance and strength of sacrifice of the Russian people.

Every Russian person should clearly know the negative properties of his national character. The breadth and immensity of the Russian soul is often associated with maximalism - either everything or nothing. Weak discipline leads to revelry and anarchism; from here lies a dangerous path to extremism, rebellion, hooliganism, and terrorism. The immensity of the soul becomes the source of a daring test of values ​​- atheism, denial of tradition, national nihilism. The lack of ethnic solidarity in everyday life, the weakness of the “tribal instinct”, disunity in front of “outsiders” makes the Russian person defenseless in relation to migrants, who are characterized by cohesion, arrogance, and cruelty. Therefore, migrants in Russia today feel like masters to a greater extent than Russians. Lack of self-discipline often leads to the inability to work systematically and achieve your goal. The above-mentioned shortcomings increase many times during periods of unrest, revolutions and other crisis social phenomena. Gullibility, a tendency to temptation, makes the Russian people a toy in the hands of political adventurers and impostors of all stripes, leads to the loss of the immune forces of sovereignty, turns them into a mob, into an electorate, into a crowd led by a herd mentality. This is the root of all social unrest and disasters.

However, negative properties do not represent the fundamental, dominant traits of the Russian character, but rather are the flip side of positive qualities, their perversion. A clear vision of the weak traits of national character will allow every Russian person to fight them, eradicate or neutralize their influence in himself.

Today, the topic related to the study of Russian national character is extremely relevant. In the conditions of a permanent social crisis at the end of the 20th and beginning of the 21st centuries, when the Russian people are humiliated, slandered, and have largely lost their vital forces, they need confirmation of their merits, including at the level of research into the Russian national character. Only on this path can the connection of times be realized by turning to tradition, to the deeds of our great ancestors - heroes, leaders, prophets, scientists and thinkers, to our national shrines, values ​​and symbols. Turning to the national tradition is like touching a healing source from which everyone can draw faith, hope, love, willpower and an example for serving the Motherland - Holy Rus'.
Kopalov Vitaly Ilyich, Professor of the Department of Philosophy, IPPC at USU. A.M. Gorky, Doctor of Philosophy

Notes:

1 - Lossky N.O. The character of the Russian people. Sowing. 1957. Book. 1. P.5.
2 - Ibid. P.21.
3 - Trofimov V.K. The soul of the Russian people: Natural-historical conditioning and essential forces. - Ekaterinburg, 1998. P.90.
4 - Ibid. P.134-135.
5 - Dostoevsky F.M. Brothers Karamazov // Dostoevsky F.M. Full collection op. In 30 volumes. T. XIV. - L., 1976. P.100.
6 - Bunin I.A. Damned days. - M., 1991. P.54.
7 - Schubart V. Europe and the soul of the East. - M., 1997. P.78.
8 - Fourteen knives in the body of Russia // Tomorrow. - 2007. - No. 18 (702).
9 - Ilyin I.A. Creative idea of ​​our future // Ilyin I.A. Collection op. V. 10 vol. T. 7. - M., 1998. P.457-458.
10 - See: Russian Doctrine ("Sergius Project"). Under the general editorship. A.B. Kobyakov and V.V. Averyanova. - M., 2005. - 363 p.
11 - Dostoevsky F.M. Writer's Diary. Featured Pages. - M., 1989. P.60-61.

Unhealthy Lifestyle

As sad as it may be, the inhabitants of the country... Favorite phrase of Russians: “It will go away on its own!” It is not customary for us to trust doctors, but it is customary to use traditional medicine recipes. Some even treat cancer with herbs and magic devices.

This happens because for such a long period of the country’s existence, we have not focused on health. We are not educated in this area and misunderstand the meaning of the saying: “What does not kill us makes us stronger.” Love for an idle lifestyle leads Russian people to.

Fortunately, today the younger generation is beginning to take an interest in their health, are interested in sports, and go to the gym to gain a beautiful figure. But this is only the beginning of a long journey after the realization that Russia was sliding down.

Life "by connections"

Another established distinctive feature of the Russian people is bribery. 200 years ago in Russia it was customary to give officials a fee for services, but even when this right was abolished, the habit remained.

The officials had settled into such comfortable conditions that they never wanted to lose financial contributions from the people. Therefore, issues are still being resolved not according to the law, but “through pull.”

It is impossible to eradicate this trait at this historical stage in Russia, since there are other global problems, but the struggle has already begun and is bringing success.

Endurance

Historical events such as uprisings, wars, blockades and constant changes of rulers led to troubles for the Russian people. This made it possible to cultivate endurance, patience and the ability to withstand adversity in people.

Russian people are only recently getting used to comfort. Previously, we spent a lot of time in the fields to feed our family; there were often lean years, so we had to work without sleep or rest.

Weather conditions also influenced the formation of the Russian mentality. Foreigners are terribly afraid of the cold. For them, 0 degrees is already a reason to wear a sheepskin coat. The Russian people are accustomed to such temperatures and tolerate them well. One has only to remember the tradition of diving into an ice hole at Christmas. Some Russians actually practice winter swimming all winter.

Today Russia is emerging from the crisis, and the people are facing new challenges. Therefore, the mentality is gradually changing, acquiring new features. But some of them will forever remain in Russian souls and will help them remain invincible and undaunted in the face of dangerous enemies.

“Nations in many ways repeat the destinies of individual people. They also have their own home, work, live better or worse, but the main thing is that, like people, they are unique individuals with their own habits and character, with their own way of understanding things. History has made peoples like this, all the circumstances of their long, difficult life,” the Russian philosopher Ilyin spoke figuratively about the national character of the people.

In a broad sense, national character is a natural phenomenon. Its bearers, ethnic groups, come and go; with them come and go various types of ethno-national character. In the narrow sense, national character is a historical phenomenon; national character changes over time as the people self-organize, the historical situation changes and the historical tasks facing society. Thus, the circumstances of the peaceful coexistence of various ethnic groups on the territory of European Russia gave rise, in the words of the writer F.M. Dostoevsky, national tolerance and “worldwide responsiveness” of Russians.

An important feature of the Russian character was patience, which ensured survival in the natural and climatic conditions of Eastern Europe. Added to this were constant wars, upheavals, and the hardships of life under the 250-year-old Tatar-Mongol yoke. In Rus' they said: “God endured and commanded us,” “For patience God gives salvation,” “Patience and labor will grind everything down.” The main condition for patience was its moral validity.

The life of a Russian person required unification into work collectives, artels, and communities. A person’s personal interests and his well-being were often placed below the well-being of the community and the state. Harsh life required fulfillment of duty, endless overcoming of difficulties; Circumstances often acted not on the side of a person, but against him, so the fulfillment of what the Great Russians planned was perceived as rare luck, luck, a gift of fate. Due to low productivity and riskiness, unpredictability of results, work for the Russian peasant became a natural, God-given occupation, rather, a punishment (suffering - from the word “suffering”).

The openness of borders and the constant external threat instilled in Russian people feelings of self-sacrifice and heroism. The consciousness of the people connected foreign invasions with the sinfulness of people. Invasions are punishments for sins and a test of perseverance and pleasing to God. Therefore, in Rus' it has always been righteous “not sparing your belly” to defend your land from the “infidels”.

The soul of the people was largely nurtured by Orthodoxy. The philosopher S. Bulgakov wrote: “The people’s worldview and spiritual way of life are determined by the Faith of Christ. No matter how far the distance between ideal and reality may be here, the norm is Christian asceticism. Asceticism is the whole story, with the Tatars oppressing him, standing at the post of guarding civilization in this cruel climate, with eternal hunger strikes, cold, suffering.” The values ​​of Orthodoxy merged with moral values ​​and formed the moral core of the people.

Traits of the Russian national character include irrationality of thinking, when figurative, emotional forms prevail over conceptual ones, when practicality and prudence recede into the background. This is also one of the sides of Russian “dual faith,” that is, the preservation and mutual integration of paganism and Orthodoxy.

Patience and humility went hand in hand with love of freedom. Byzantine and Arab authors wrote about the love of freedom of the Slavs in ancient times. The cruelest serfdom could easily coexist with the love of freedom as long as it did not encroach on the inner world of man or until boundless violence ensued. Protest resulted in uprisings and, more often than not, retreat to undeveloped lands. The geopolitical realities of Eastern Europe and Siberia allowed this to be done for many centuries.

At the same time, the best features of the national character crystallized within subethnic groups. In the minds of the Cossack, military valor and fulfillment of duty were elevated to the absolute level, in the minds of the Siberian - inflexibility, perseverance and perseverance.

Thus, the partially examined traits of the Russian character make it possible to highlight duality, the struggle of opposites. According to the philosopher N. Berdyaev, Russia itself is “dual”: it has united different cultures, “Russia is East-West.”

Academician D.S. Likhachev wrote: “We need to understand the traits of the Russian character... Correctly directed. These traits are an invaluable quality of a Russian person. A revival of self-esteem, a revival of conscience and the concept of honesty - this is, in general terms, what we need.”

IN. Klyuchevsky:“The prudent Great Russian sometimes loves, headlong, to choose the most hopeless and imprudent solution, contrasting the whim of nature with the whim of his own courage. This inclination to tease happiness, to play with luck is the Great Russian maybe. Not a single people in Europe is capable of such intense labor for a short time as the Great Russians can develop... we will not find such an unaccustomed attitude to even, moderate and measured, constant work as in Great Russia.

He is generally reserved and cautious, even timid, always on his own mind... self-doubt excites his strength, and success weakens it. The inability to calculate in advance, figure out a plan of action and go straight to the intended goal was noticeably reflected in the mentality of the Great Russian... he became more cautious than prudent... Russian people are strong in hindsight...”

ON THE. Berdyaev:“In a Russian person there is no narrowness of a European person, concentrating his energy on a small space of the soul, there is no this prudence, economy of space and time... The power of breadth over the Russian soul gives rise to a whole series of Russian qualities and Russian shortcomings. Russian laziness, carelessness, lack of initiative, and a poorly developed sense of responsibility are associated with this. The land rules over the Russian man... The Russian man, the man of the earth, feels helpless to take possession of these spaces and organize them. He is too accustomed to entrust this organization to the central government...”

Alfred Goettner:“The severity and stinginess of nature, deprived, however, of the wild power of the sea and high mountains, taught him the passive virtues of contentment with little, patience, obedience - virtues further strengthened by the history of the country...”

Russian people are generally broad people...

wide as their land,

and extremely prone

to the fantastic, to the disorderly;

but the trouble is being wide

without much genius.

F.M. Dostoevsky

One can talk endlessly about the Russian character and its characteristics... There are so many things mixed up in a Russian person that you can’t even count them on your fingers.

What does it mean to be Russian? What is the peculiarity of the Russian character? How often do gray-haired academics ask this question in scientific debates, smart journalists in various shows, and ordinary citizens in table discussions? They ask and answer. They answer differently, but everyone notes our Russian “specialness” and is proud of it. You can’t lure a Russian person with a roll - Russians are so eager to preserve their own, dear, that they are proud of the most disgusting aspects of their identity: drunkenness, dirt, poverty. Russians make up jokes about how no one can outdrink them, happily showing their dirt to foreigners.

“The mysterious Russian soul”... We use all sorts of epithets to bestow upon our Russian mentality. Is she so mysterious, the Russian soul, is she really so unpredictable? Maybe everything is much simpler? We Russians are capable of self-sacrifice in the name of our homeland, but we are not able to defend our interests as citizens of this country. We meekly accept all the resolutions and decisions of our leadership: we are choking in queues to replace our driver’s licenses; we lose consciousness in passport and visa services while waiting to receive a new passport; We knock on the threshold of the tax office in order to find out what number you now live under in this world. And this list can be continued endlessly. Limitless patience is what distinguishes a Russian person. How can one disagree with foreigners who personify us with a bear - huge, menacing, but so clumsy? We are probably rougher, certainly tougher in many cases. Russians have cynicism, emotional limitations, and a lack of culture. There is fanaticism, unscrupulousness, and cruelty. But still, mostly Russians strive for good.

For a Russian person, this is the most terrible accusation - the accusation of greed. All Russian folklore is based on the fact that being greedy is bad and greed is punishable. The catch, apparently, is that this same breadth can only be polar: drunkenness, unhealthy gambling, living for free, on the one hand. But, on the other hand, the purity of faith, carried and preserved through the centuries. Again, a Russian person cannot believe quietly and modestly. He never hides, but goes to execution for his faith, walking with his head held high, striking his enemies.

The character traits of the Russian person are very accurately noted in folk tales and epics. In them, the Russian man dreams of a better future, but he is too lazy to make his dreams come true. He keeps hoping that he will catch a talking pike or catch a goldfish that will fulfill his wishes. This primordial Russian laziness and love of dreaming about the advent of better times has always prevented our people from living like human beings. And the tendency towards acquisitiveness, again mixed with great laziness! A Russian person is too lazy to grow or make something that his neighbor has - it is much easier for him to steal it, and even then not himself, but to ask someone else to do it. A typical example of this is the case of the king and the rejuvenating apples. Of course, in fairy tales and satirical stories, many features are greatly exaggerated and sometimes reach the point of absurdity, but nothing arises out of nowhere - there is no smoke without fire. Such a trait of the Russian character as long-suffering often goes beyond the bounds of reason. From time immemorial, Russian people have resignedly endured humiliation and oppression. The already mentioned laziness and blind faith in a better future are partly to blame here. Russian people would rather endure than fight for their rights. But no matter how great the patience of the people, it is still not limitless. The day comes and humility transforms into unbridled rage. Then woe to anyone who gets in the way. It’s not for nothing that Russian people are compared to a bear.

But not everything is so bad and gloomy in our Fatherland. We Russians have many positive character traits. Russians are deeply partisan and have high fortitude; they are capable of defending their land to the last drop of blood. Since ancient times, both young and old have risen to fight against invaders.

A special conversation about the character of Russian women. A Russian woman has unbending fortitude; she is ready to sacrifice everything for the sake of a loved one and go to the ends of the earth for him. Moreover, this is not blindly following a spouse, like Eastern women, but a completely conscious and independent decision. This is what the wives of the Decembrists did, going after them to distant Siberia and dooming themselves to a life full of hardships. Nothing has changed since then: even now, in the name of love, a Russian woman is ready to spend her entire life wandering around the most remote corners of the world.

Speaking about the peculiarities of the Russian character, one cannot fail to mention the cheerful disposition - a Russian sings and dances even in the most difficult periods of his life, and even more so in joy! He is generous and loves to go out on a grand scale - the breadth of the Russian soul has already become the talk of the town. Only a Russian person can give everything he has for the sake of one happy moment and not regret it later. Let's remember the poor artist who sold everything he had and showered his beloved with flowers. This is a fairy tale, but it is not so far from life - a Russian person is unpredictable and you can expect anything from him.

Russian people have an inherent aspiration for something infinite. Russians always have a thirst for a different life, a different world, they always have dissatisfaction with what they have. Due to greater emotionality, Russian people are characterized by openness and sincerity in communication. If in Europe people are quite alienated in their personal lives and protect their individualism, then a Russian person is open to being interested in him, showing interest in him, caring for him, just as he himself is inclined to be interested in the lives of those around him: both his soul wide open and curious - what is behind the soul of the other.

There are dozens of images in our literature, each of which bears the indelible stamp of the Russian character: Natasha Rostova and Matryona Timofeevna, Platon Karataev and Dmitry Karamazov, Raskolnikov and Melekhov, Onegin and Pechorin, Vasily Terkin and Andrei Sokolov. You can't list them all. Are there really no such people in life? The pilot saves the city at the cost of his life, not leaving the stalled plane until the last moment; a tractor driver dies in a burning tractor, taking it away from a grain field; a family of nine takes in three more orphaned children; the master spends years creating a unique, priceless masterpiece and then donates it to an orphanage... You can continue ad infinitum. Behind all this there is also a Russian character. But aren't other people capable of this? Where is the line that will help distinguish a Russian person from the rest? And there is another side to him: the ability for unbridled revelry and drunkenness, callousness and selfishness, indifference and cruelty. The world looks at him and sees a mystery in him. For us, Russian character is an alloy of the best qualities that will always prevail over dirt and vulgarity, and, perhaps, the most important of them is selflessly devoted love for one’s land. Tenderly stroking a birch tree and talking to it, greedily inhaling the heady aroma of arable land, reverently holding a poured ear of corn in your palm, seeing off a crane wedge with tears in your eyes - only a Russian person can do this, and may he remain like this forever and ever.

The Russian character is complex and multifaceted, but that’s what makes it beautiful. He is beautiful in his breadth and openness, cheerful disposition and love for his homeland, childish innocence and fighting spirit, ingenuity and peacefulness, hospitality and mercy. And we owe this entire palette of the best qualities to our homeland - Russia, a fabulous and great country, warm and affectionate, like the hands of a mother.

From all that has been said, we have to conclude that the only undeniable feature of the Russian character is inconsistency, complexity, and the ability to combine opposites. And is it possible on a land like Russian not to be special? After all, this feature did not appear today, but was formed day by day, from year to year, from century to century, from millennium to millennium...

And Leskov tried to create just such a Russian person in his works...

The character of the Russian people was formed mainly under the influence of time and space. The history and geographical location of our homeland also made their own adjustments. The constant danger from possible raids and wars united people, gave birth to special patriotism, and the desire for strong centralized power. The climatic conditions, not the most favorable, it must be said, forced the people to unite and strengthened their particularly strong character. The vast expanses of our country have given a special scope to the actions and feelings of the Russian people. Although these generalizations are conditional, it is still possible to identify common features and patterns.

Since its inception, Russia has shown itself to be an unusual country, unlike others, which aroused curiosity and added mystery. Russia does not fit the mold, does not fit into any standards, everything in it is not similar to the majority. And this makes its character, the character of its people, very complex and contradictory, difficult for foreigners to understand.

Nowadays, scientists and researchers have begun to find an increasing role for national character in the development of society as a whole. It is a single, holistic system that has a hierarchy of traits and qualities that influence the way of thinking and action of a given nation. It passes on to people from generation to generation; changing it by taking administrative measures is quite difficult, but it is still possible, although large-scale changes require a lot of time and effort.

There is interest in the Russian national character not only abroad, but we ourselves are trying to understand it, although this is not entirely successful. We cannot understand our actions or explain some historical situations, although we notice some originality and illogicality in our actions and thoughts.

Today in our country there is a turning point, which we are experiencing with difficulty and, in my opinion, not entirely correctly. In the 20th century, there was a loss of many values ​​and a decline in national self-awareness. And in order to get out of this state, the Russian people must, first of all, understand themselves, return to their previous features and instill values, and eradicate shortcomings.

The very concept of national character is widely used today by politicians, scientists, the media, and writers. Often this concept has very different meanings. Scholars have debated whether national character actually exists. And today the existence of certain characteristics characteristic of only one people is recognized. These features are manifested in the way of life, thoughts, behavior and activities of the people of a given nation. Based on this, we can say that national character is a certain set of physical and spiritual qualities, norms of activity and behavior characteristic of only one nation.

The character of each nation is very complex and contradictory due to the fact that the history of each nation is complex and contradictory. Also important factors are climatic, geographical, social, political and other conditions that influence the formation and development of national character. Researchers believe that all factors and conditions can be divided into two groups: natural-biological and socio-cultural.

The first explains that people belonging to different races will express their character and temperament in different ways. It should be said here that the type of society formed by a particular people will also have a strong influence on its character. Therefore, understanding the national character of a people occurs through understanding the society, conditions and factors in which this people lives.

It is also important that the type of society itself is determined by the value system adopted in it. Thus, social values ​​are the basis of national character. National character is a set of important methods of regulating activity and communication, created in accordance with the social values ​​inherent in a given people. Therefore, in order to understand the Russian national character, it is necessary to highlight the values ​​characteristic of the Russian people.

The Russian character is distinguished by such qualities as conciliarity and nationality, striving for something infinite. Our nation has religious and ethnic tolerance. A Russian person is constantly dissatisfied with what he currently has, he always wants something different. The peculiarity of the Russian soul is explained, on the one hand, by “having your head in the clouds,” and on the other, by the inability to cope with your emotions. We either contain them as much as possible, or release them all at once. Maybe that’s why there is so much soulfulness in our culture.

The features of the Russian national character are reflected most accurately in works of folk art. It is worth highlighting fairy tales and epics here. The Russian man wants a better future, but he is too lazy to actually do anything for this. He would rather resort to the help of a goldfish or a talking pike. Probably the most popular character in our fairy tales is Ivan the Fool. And this is not without reason. After all, behind the outwardly careless, lazy son of an ordinary Russian peasant who can’t do anything, hides a pure soul. Ivan is kind, sympathetic, savvy, naive, compassionate. At the end of the tale, he always wins over the prudent and pragmatic royal son. That's why people consider him their hero.

The feeling of patriotism among the Russian people, it seems to me, is beyond doubt. For a long time, both old people and children fought against invaders and occupiers. Suffice it to recall the Patriotic War of 1812, when the entire people, the entire army asked to give battle to the French.

The character of a Russian woman deserves special attention. Enormous strength of will and spirit forces her to sacrifice everything for the sake of a person close to her. She can follow her loved one to the ends of the earth, and this will not be a blind and obsessive following, as is customary in eastern countries, but this is a conscious and independent act. You can take as an example the wives of the Decembrists and some writers and poets sent into exile in Siberia. These women very consciously deprived themselves of everything for the sake of their husbands.

One cannot help but mention the cheerful and perky disposition and sense of humor of Russians. No matter how hard it is, a Russian person will always find a place for fun and joy, and if it’s not hard and everything is fine, then the scope of the fun is guaranteed. They have spoken, are speaking, and will continue to speak about the breadth of the Russian soul. A Russian person simply needs to go wild, make a splash, show off, even if for this he has to give away his last shirt.

Since ancient times, there has been no place for self-interest in the Russian character; material values ​​have never come to the fore. A Russian person has always been able to make enormous efforts in the name of high ideals, be it the defense of the Motherland or the upholding of sacred values.

A harsh and difficult life has taught Russians to be content and get by with what they have. Constant self-restraint has left its mark. That is why the desire for monetary accumulation and wealth at any cost was not widespread among our people. This was the privilege of Europe.

Oral folk art is very important for Russians. Knowing proverbs, sayings, fairy tales and phraseological units that reflect the reality of our lives, a person was considered educated, worldly wise, and possessing folk spirituality. Spirituality is also one of the characteristic traits of a Russian person.

Due to increased emotionality, our people are characterized by openness and sincerity. This is especially evident in communication. If we take Europe as an example, then individualism is highly developed there, which is protected in every possible way, but here, on the contrary, people are interested in what is happening in the lives of those around them, and a Russian person will never refuse to talk about his life. This also most likely includes compassion - another very Russian character trait.

Along with positive qualities such as generosity, breadth of soul, openness, courage, there is one, of course, negative one. I'm talking about drunkenness. But it is not something that has gone hand in hand with us throughout the country's history. No, this is an illness that we caught relatively recently and cannot get rid of it. After all, we did not invent vodka, it was brought to us only in the 15th century, and it did not immediately become popular. Therefore, it is impossible to say that drunkenness is a distinctive feature and feature of our national character.

It is also worth noting a feature that makes you both surprised and delighted - this is the responsiveness of the Russian people. It is embedded in us from childhood. When helping someone, our person is often guided by the proverb: “What comes around, so will it come back.” Which, in general, is correct.

National character is not static, it constantly changes as society changes and, in turn, has its impact on it. The Russian national character that has emerged today has similarities with the character that once existed before. Some features remain, some are lost. But the basis and essence have been preserved.