National patriotic day parade: the politics of historical memory and reconstruction of the russian identity during putin era

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3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This article aims to analyze the politics of historical memory, the function and meaning behind the procession of the Parade on the Russian National Victory Day (Dend Pobeda) every May 9th. The day has become a ritual for the Russian nation since the Soviet Union era; it has become a collective memory for the Russians who had defeated the Fascist German military at the end of World War II. Russia’s government during Vladimir Putin presidential tenure has tried to reproduce and reconstruct memories by holding grandeur events of the Parade in the Red Square. This article then proposes some questions: why does Putin feel that he bears the authority to reconstruct it? What are the meanings behind the Parade for the Russians and Putin’s government? It used Putin’s official speeches between 2000–2018 as the primary sources to explore and reveal what made Putin’s regime to put the Victory Day parade as the instrument to reconstruct and reproduce the post-Soviet Russian national identity. By using historical approach within the collective memory conceptual framework, it found that the May 9th Parade ritual comprises various symbolic meanings, including the meaning of giving, blessing, success, history, and togetherness. As a ritual that is practiced annually in a national-wide ceremony, the May 9th Parade has subtly functioned as a pseudo religion to Putin’s regime.

Original languageEnglish
Article number1992081
JournalCogent Arts and Humanities
Volume8
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2021

Keywords

  • collective memory
  • Parade
  • politics of identity
  • putin era
  • reconstruction

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