Patriotism is a bright and creative feeling based on love for the Motherland and respect for one's compatriots. However, sometimes it takes unpleasant, even dangerous forms. For example, jingoism is patriotism, taken to the extreme, to the point of absurdity. Love for the Fatherland turns into a blind irrational obsession, which suppresses the ability to critical thinking.
Hurray-patriot is set up only to praise his own country and at the same time often does not like other states and peoples. He turns a blind eye to unpleasant facts and problems, eagerly agrees with any decisions of the authorities, easily dismisses real facts, is intolerant of the opposite opinion, and is ready to accuse the person who disagrees with his point of view of national treason. But how to grasp and realize the line, after which an adequate citizen becomes an adherent of cheers-patriotism, what kind of phenomenon is this, what is its meaning and reasons? To do this, understand the basic concepts.
Genuine patriotism
Recently in Russia there has been an extraordinary patriotic upsurge in society. There are many reasons for pride in the country: the Olympics in Sochi, the annexation of Crimea, the military successes in Syria, the excellently held world soccer championship, and the country's increased geopolitical weight. Of course, people evaluate each of these events differently, but in general today more than 90% of Russians call themselves Russian patriots.
Although in the nineties after the collapse of the USSR, the word “patriot” became almost a curse word, it was often endowed with a negative connotation, associating it with Soviet ideology, nomenclature opportunism inherent in it in recent years or jingoistic patriotism. The citizens of young Russia did not quite understand which country they live in, where this country is moving, and whether it will even exist in a few years.
The difficult and troubled nineties passed, the state passed the test, solved a number of complex problems and entered the new millennium more strong and stable in economic and political terms. The Russians began to look to the future with great hope and confidence. The concept of a patriot has regained its true meaning. People have ceased to be shy of their patriotic feelings and voluntarily show it. What is true patriotism?
According to dictionaries, this is a moral category and a special social feeling, which is expressed in love for one’s own Fatherland (region, city), readiness to put state interests above own benefits and benefits, in the desire to defend the homeland, to uphold its integrity. Patriotism is also called a strong emotional experience of a person who is internally aware of his obvious belonging to a particular state, people, language, culture, history, traditions.
Types of Patriotism
There are several well-established types of patriotism:
- State. Its foundation is the love of the state, pride in their country.
- Imperial. A sense of belonging to the Empire, loyalty to its authorities.
- Hooray-patriotism. He is bast or kvass. It is characterized by exaggerated, extreme love and loyalty to the state, government, and people.
- Ethnic. Love and commitment to their ethnic group.
- Local. Attachment to the region, the city, even the street, to traditions, culture, a certain way of life.
Patriotism and the state
For the state, patriotism often becomes a fundamental, unifying country idea, a moral and spiritual foundation. Patriotic citizens are easier to manage, because usually they are loyal even to unpopular decisions and laws of the authorities. Patriots are ready to endure hardships and sacrifice their interests for the sake of national interests, they are devoted to national values, they always advocate the integrity of the country's territory and without coercion go to protect it in case of war.
Patriotic education
It is very difficult for a state to exist that denies the importance of patriotism. An unpatriotic society is a threat to power. The people at the head of Russia understand this very well, therefore they do not spare forces and resources on state programs for the patriotic education of Russian citizens. National patriotism is proclaimed the most important factor for the unification of society.
Patriotic attitudes and values of Russians are formed with the help of the media, cinema, fiction, and music. In addition, patriotic feelings are brought up and developed in such areas as the unity of national history and language, the glorification of domestic heroes of different times, the exaltation of the country's economic, military, sports, diplomatic, scientific and cultural achievements.
Patriotism and man
But this feeling is important not only for the state and government. Patriotism gives a person an invaluable sense of spiritual connection with the country, with their own nation and land. Through love of the Fatherland, people feel their identity, belonging to a common history and culture. A person is aware of involvement in many already passed generations, in a special national worldview and way of life.
People who are not able to love their homeland are like a tree that has lost its roots. They can call themselves cosmopolitans and citizens of the world, but, in fact, they become strangers wherever they live. Patriotism is a completely natural state of the human soul; it helps to find the meaning of life. However, just as love can turn into a painful, destructive passion, dangerous fanatics can sometimes be obtained from a sincere patriot.
Nationalism
The roots of nationalism grow out of ethnic patriotism. For a nationalist, the main value is his people, the nation as a community of people connected by one history, language, territory, economic ties, characteristic signs and traditions. Sometimes nationalism becomes the basis for public policy and ideology. Sometimes he appears spontaneously among a certain group of people who are united by nationalistic ideas.
For a moderate nationalist, loyalty to their own people and the desire to transform the state so that the nation flourishes are in the first place. However, extreme right-wing nationalism can lead to great disasters, because often it turns into nationalist cheers-patriotism. The difference between radicalism is that the love of one’s ethnic group is largely supplemented or even replaced by intolerance towards other countries and hatred towards representatives of other nationalities.
Good motivation, with proper brainwashing, is easily stained with the browns of Nazism and extremism. Such patriots in a nationalist frenzy sometimes begin to proclaim the special position of Russians in the country, their privilege and superiority over other nationalities inhabiting Russia. However, this approach is unacceptable and dangerous in a multinational state; therefore, inciting ethnic hatred and hatred is considered a crime in Russian law.
What is jingoism?
Kvasny, or cheers-patriots, are called people who unconditionally and enthusiastically praise their state, the decision of the authorities and everything domestic, not wanting to recognize and even notice the mistakes of the rulers and the negative features of their country. Hooray-patriotic love is noisy, categorical and public, but often turns out to be false or changeable.
Term history
Typically, the concepts of "cheers-patriot", "marsh" or "leavened" patriot are considered synonyms. Therefore, with a high degree of probability we can say when the concept of “cheers-patriotism” appeared. His authorship is attributed to Prince Peter Vyazemsky, who was a Russian poet, statesman, translator, talented literary critic, publicist, close friend of Pushkin.
In 1827, in one of his letters, the prince ironically called kvas and lackey patriotism the propensity of some compatriots to the reckless and frenzied praise of all of his. Kvass was used here as a symbol of everything Russian, indigenous, Slavic, which enthusiastic Slavophiles loved to refer to. Although true patriotism, according to Vyazemsky, should be based on a discerning love for the fatherland. Subsequently, the concept of "cheers-patriotism" became more popular and used in everyday speech, almost completely supplant their synonyms.
Portrait of a cheer patriot
There is a fairly persistent pattern: when the state is in good times, when it is booming economically and culturally, emerges victorious from war or a difficult geopolitical situation, a lot of cheer patriots appear in society. They frantically praise power, nation or country, enjoying their involvement in great events and victories. But in difficult moments for the state, the number of enthusiastic citizens is rapidly decreasing, and yesterday's patriots sometimes become inexorable detractors.
Hooray-patriotism is a kind of mental state. If you make a universal portrait of a cheer patriot, then, of course, the following features can be attributed to him: suggestibility; demagogy and double standards; aggressiveness and impatience to the opinions of others; categorical judgments; propensity for slogans and generalizations; craving for militarism and an authoritarian style of government; common chauvinism and hostility towards opponents, other countries and nationalities.
Fortunately, in ordinary conditions kvass patriotism is inherent in a small number of Russians. Most of them are without pleasure, but recognize the problems and shortcomings of their country, have critical thinking and the ability to listen to counter-arguments. However, with the help of the media and propaganda with cheers, whole nations can be infected, a lot of evidence in history.
The danger of cheers
One of the main features of the cheer patriot is his confidence in the strength and invincibility of his state. For example, before the First World War, millions of Europeans longed for the outbreak of hostilities, succumbing to the powerful influence of propaganda and the statements of the authorities and the military. Europe was saturated with militaristic ideas. Such a fire of cheer-patriotism was burning that any calls for peace and warnings of terrible misfortunes drowned in universal calls for war.
All participants in the upcoming massacre were convinced of the victory. The result of this explosion of patriotism was a crazy war in which nearly thirty million Europeans were killed, maimed and wounded and several empires ceased to exist. Hooray-patriotism flourished in fascist Italy, Nazi Germany and Japan, which unleashed an even more terrible war. In this global conflict, nearly one hundred and fifty million people were killed and wounded.
This phenomenon has not spared Russia. Before the Russo-Japanese War, at the beginning of the twentieth century, militaristic ideas, cheers, patriotism and hatred sentiments reigned in the Russian Empire. A significant part of the population longed for a quick victory over the Japanese, the military and officials were convinced that Russian weapons and a Russian warrior would quickly break the resistance of technically backward Japan. As a result, Russia was deafeningly lost, practically losing the fleet, concluding a humiliating peace treaty and experiencing a nationwide sense of humiliation.
Already in Soviet Russia similar events took place. In 1939, before the start of the war with Finland, with the help of the media, Soviet citizens raised confidence in the lightning victory of the Red Army and the need to invade a neighboring country. But the hostilities turned into enormous losses, insignificant successes against them and an agreement that secured the status of an independent state for Finland.
