Essential Characteristics Of Russian Patriotism

Relevance of this research is emanating from the need to identify basic and accessory meaning elements of patriotism, clarify definition of the term 'patriotism', which in the modern world acquires new connotations related to the values of the western culture and departure from the historical-cultural heritage. In view of the above, the purpose of this paper is to reveal the essential characteristics of patriotism in modern days as a basic value of the Russians, its national specificity in the light of historical and social changes, different scientific interpretations and cultural metaphors, reflecting multidimensionality of this concept. The leading approaches to the study of this problem are axiological and anthropological, which allow to consider the depth of the concept "patriotism", its national origins, value orientations and specific features in the modern realities. The research employed general scientific methods (analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, comparative-historical and dialectical methods). The paper presents theoretical foundations for the definition of "patriotism", reveals the essential characteristics of Russian patriotism, identifies the key development stages and changes in the socio-cultural content of patriotism and provides an overview of the problems related to the patriotic dimension in the modern socio-cultural reality of Russians. Proceedings of this paper reflect the contemporary views on patriotism, and have a practical value for the studies of Russian national character and specific features of Russian culture and art from synchronic and diachronic viewpoints.