Belarusan and Russian Culture on the
Periphery of Ideological Systems:
The Use of History to Control Symbolic
Thought Processes
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Adjunct Assistant Sociology Professor
Georgetown University
Publication date: 2016-09-30
JoMS 2016;30(3):33-56
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ABSTRACT
This article discusses the role of history and language for the country of Belarus,
which is on the border of Western and Eastern ideological systems. The content is
based on observation and discussions with individuals during the time-period 2003–
2014. The aim of this article is to sociologically present a model which illustrates how
post-Soviet authoritarian systems control time and space symbolically to recreate an
ideological design that allows an authoritarian regime to maintain power through
the use of the Soviet Symbolic framework. This model, based on the example of
discussions with Belarusans, is applicable as a comparative tool to understand the
processes taking place in the Ukraine and also in Russia. The argument in this article
integrates history, systems of state ideology and identity formation on the border of
two cultural civilizations. Comparative examples concerning the conflict with Russia
and the Ukraine are used to apply the theoretical model based on current changes
and events in the regional macro-infrastructure offering a sociological take on the
link between historical and contemporary social and cultural changes in this region.