The intellectual origins of putinism

pp. 83-112

in: Käte C. Langdon, Vladimir Tismaneanu, Putin's totalitarian democracy, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 2020

Abstract

In order to properly comprehend the abstract mysteries of Putin's popularity and actions, this research must first outline the historical foundations and operational points of Putinism. Langdon and Tismaneanu begin by elaborating upon some of the best operational definitions of ideology. After establishing Putinism as an ideology, they explore the intellectual origins of Putinism. The authors consider the contributions of philosophers such as Ivan Ilyin and Aleksandr Dugin and concepts such as (neo-)Eurasianism. While these Russian philosophers and concepts do not define Putinism or its parameters, they nevertheless exemplify the fact that Putinist ideology was never created by Putin alone. Instead, it built itself off of historical trends, cultural desires, and socially constructed myths.