CONSTRUCTING THE IMAGE OF THE SOVIET PAST IN THE HISTORICAL MEMORY OF RESIDENTS OF THE REPUBLIC OF BELARUS VIA SCHOOL EDUCATIONAL LITERATURE

The article was prepared as part of the research topic 123091200055-4 “Images and narratives of the historical memory of the Russian society: the value imperative of civil activism” of the Expert Institute of Social Research and supported by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education at the Institute of Scientific Information for Social Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Abstract. The article discusses the phenomenon of historical memory and the practices of historical policy on the post-Soviet territory using the example of Belarus. It was extremely important for the USSR former republics to work out a national narrative that would contribute to the legitimation of the new government and consolidate the necessary iconic and symbolic images and value judgments in the collective consciousness. The post-Soviet territory often saw an appeal for the creation of victimized images, images of a martyr nation, where a pantheon of new heroes was created, who often carried out anti-Soviet and anti-Russian activities in the past. Interest to the works by the representatives of nationalist trends in social and scientific thought was revived. The article stresses the idea expressed by other researchers that school educational literature is the key channel to form stable images in the collective consciousness. A reconstruction of the modern official discourse of the Republic of Belarus was undertaken to reflect the Soviet past using educational literature. The analysis of textbooks on world history, the history of Belarus, and the history of the Great Patriotic War leads to the conclusion that the Soviet past is predominantly perceived positively. The October Revolution of 1917, the national policy of the USSR in the 1920s, socialist modernization, and post-war economic development received a positive assessment of Belarusian scholars. The history of the Great Patriotic War continues to be the key topos of the historical memory of the Republic of Belarus. Undoubtedly, textbooks reflect a discussion between the main directions in Belarusian scientific and sociopolitical thought – nationalism and Western Russianism. Meanwhile, the analysis of educational literature convinces us that the mechanisms of memory wars are not used to create a national narrative.
Keywords: historical memory, collective consciousness, national narrative, Belarusian textbooks, Soviet past.

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES OF THE SOCIETY OF URAL MINING TECHNICIANS IN THE FIRST QUARTER OF THE XX CENTURY

Abstract. The article considers the educational activities of the Society of Ural Mining Technicians from 1901 to 1917, which affected the development of scientific and technical thought and training of the personnel of engineers, technicians and workers of the Ural mining plants.
The article aims to analyze the educational activities of the Society of Ural Mining Technicians from 1901 to 1917, namely the organization of publishing and exhibition projects, which promoted the development of culture as well as scientific and technical thought in the Urals and in Russia as a whole. The authors describe in detail the stages of the creation of the scientific and technical journal “Uralsky Tekhnik”, which described the latest achievements of domestic and foreign science and technology. They also dwell on library work.
The study analyzes the historiography of the issue, which shows that it was only in the 1960s that interest in the activities of the Society of Ural Mining Technicians arose. However, historians have not yet dealt with a comprehensive analysis of the Society’s educational activities, which confirms the relevance of the subject of the article.
In the course of the research, the authors conclude that the educational activities of the Company made a great contribution to the dissemination and development of scientific thought, the growth of professional experience of the technical personnel of the Ural plants, contributed to the expansion of the horizons of the members of the SUMT and the professional community, as well as the consolidation of professional personnel.
At present the study of the educational activities of the Society of Ural Mining Technicians can be an example of the formation of values, in-depth knowledge of the history of the native land and respect for the historical past of the homeland.
The specific historical research methods applied in the study include: the method of content analysis, on the basis of which the research material was collected from published pre-revolutionary sources; historical and systematic and chronological methods, which made it possible to unite and consistently reveal aspects of the educational activities of the SUMT. The principle of historicism helped to trace the development of the Society’s educational activity from its foundation to 1917.
Keywords: educational activities, publishing and librarianship, exhibitions, scientific and technical thought.

OPPOSITION IN THE USSR: ON THE ISSUE OF REDEFINING THE TERM

Abstract. The subject of the article is the struggle for power in the USSR. The study aims to consider the position of various political figures during the formation of the Soviet project as an alternative civilization to world capitalism from the point of view of globalization and global political processes. The author proposes and substantiates a fundamentally new view of the “opposition” in the country, according to which, in a global sense, in the Soviet ruling stratum, the “opposition” groups were not opposed to the leadership of the country, but to the globalization of the World, the transformation of the Soviet Union into a subordinate mechanism of the international capital and convergence trends. The concept of “opposition” in the article, in its turn, refers to people and groups who opposed all those processes, primarily the destruction of national states, including the USSR itself, in order to turn it into a raw material base for transnational corporations. The relevance of the article in historical terms is determined by the need to identify the trends in the development of the USSR, to understand all the aspects of its weakening and, finally, dissolution in 1991. In public terms, the issues raised in the study are relevant due to the fact that many processes and phenomena that weakened the Soviet society still exist today, influencing the state of affairs in the Russian Federation and its status as the successor of the Soviet Union on the world arena. The methodology of the article is the philosophy of practice with its inherent principles of historicism, consistency and objectivity. In addition, the author widely applies interdisciplinary connections with political science and other related sciences. The result of the research and the main conclusion of the article is the proposed revision of the concept of “opposition” in relation to the Soviet era. The conclusions and main results can be used in teaching history and creating monographs on the political history of the USSR, as well as to develop recommendations for authorities in the field of historical education and addressing national security issues.
Keywords: USSR, power, opposition, convergence, communism, Stalinism, state.

CIVILIZATIONAL FOUNDATIONS OF RUSSIAN STATEHOOD

Abstract. The article is devoted to the analysis of the civilizational foundations of Russian statehood, which have influenced the political and legal structure of the country. The study examines the historical, cultural and spiritual aspects that contributed to the formation of Russia’s unique path of development. The main focus is on the key events in the history of the country, which required the society and state to find specific solutions to crises leading to the centralization of power and collectivism.
The author applies a systematic approach and various methods of analysis to study the sociocultural factors that determine Russian statehood, and relies on numerous scientific sources.
Keywords: Russian statehood, civilizational foundations, cultural traditions, political organization, historical development, spiritual and moral values, centralization of power, collectivism, sociocultural determinants, historical and legal analysis, systematic approach, comparative legal analysis, civilizational analysis.

PROPAEDEUTIC PREPARATION OF SCHOOLCHILDREN TO STUDYING ECONOMIC THEORY ON THE BASIS OF MATHEMATICAL MODELLING AND FUNCTIONAL LITERACY

Abstract. The article discusses the problem of the propaedeutic preparation of schoolchildren to studying economic theory. The preparation is based on experimenting, functional mathematical literacy, mathematical modelling and algorithmization of elementary economic phenomena. The relevance of this kind of work is due to the rapid pace of development and/or growth of infrastructure, digitalization, economy and economic security. No doubt, the formation of competencies related to economy should begin in primary school. As soon as schoolchildren become familiar with algebra, it is possible and even necessary to start teaching them the basics of mathematical modelling of economy. We consider this to be a solution to the problems posed by the state to form the foundations of critical thinking, global competencies and creativity in the new generation.
Keywords: functional literacy, economy, mathematical modelling, practical problems, analytics and experiment.

RUSSIA’S FOOD TRADE AND ITS TRANSFORMATION IN THE ERA OF PERMANENT CRISES, DEGLOBALIZATION AND REGIONALIZATION OF ECONOMY

Abstract. In recent years, the consumer market of Russia has been developing under the conditions of permanent economic and socio-economic crises, the effect of which is complicated by the processes of deglobalization and regionalization, and the forced reorientation of commodity circulation from West to East under the influence of multilevel sanctions imposed by the former partner countries. This could not but affect the country’s trade infrastructure.
The article aims to analyze the structural and organizational changes in the infrastructure of the consumer market, which is the most vulnerable part for the society. Public information collected and provided by the country’s largest retailers serves as the research material. The analysis relies on the methods of analysis and synthesis, and is based on the example of the development of strategic Russian trading companies. Based on the results obtained, the authors identify the problems that are only about to arise as they need solving today, as well as the risks accompanying them, in order to maintain a competitive environment in the market, ensure the country’s food security and meet the needs of various social groups.
The article takes a closer look at the issues of the excessive consolidation of consumer market infrastructure, format mixing in shop building, distortions in the development of the segment of food discounters and excessive optimization of the assortment, organizational complexity of the business and its growing “opacity”. The author substantiates the probable consequences of the established trends in the development of trade infrastructure, including the risks of market oligopolization and cartel collusion, the loss of a large number of active entrepreneurs who become passive rentiers, an artificial reduction in the product supply and alternative channels for delivering goods to customers, and the growth of the administrative resource of the backbone business.
The study contains proposals to review the de facto strategy of developing the food segment of the consumer market infrastructure, encouraged by the Government of the country, taking into account the restructuring of the economy, the development and support of national producers in terms of their access to the distribution network, overcoming the consequences of uncontrolled development of socially significant market infrastructure and preserving the diversity of its participants.
Keywords: food trade, deglobalization, regionalization, trade infrastructure, problems and risks, food security.

THE CONCEPT OF DEPRAVITY IN THE NOVEL “GREAT EXPECTATIONS” BY CHARLES DICKENS

Abstract. The article attempts to analyze deception and hypocrisy as the semantic specifiers of the concept of “depravity” in Charles Dickens’s novel “Great Expectations”. As it is a “novel of education”, it allows considering the concept of “depravity” in the dynamic semantic variation, i.e. to analyze which of the features of the concept are characteristic of different periods of a person’s life, as well as the way it is integrated into the individual worldview. The research methods of conceptological and component-semantic analysis make it possible to thoroughly analyze the relationships between the concept elements, identify the similarities and differences in their characteristics, and describe the features of the spatio-temporal and sociocultural contexts of their functioning. The key specifiers of the concept of “depravity” in the novel are deception and hypocrisy. They demonstrate the stages of the development of depravity in the process of a person’s socialization. At the same time, deception and hypocrisy are clearly differentiated according to a number of criteria such as: carriers of depravity, external manifestations and causes of occurrence. Deception is characterized as the initial stage of depravity, inherent in children in a situation of threat, and also expressed in external signs. Hypocrisy, in its turn, is described as the final stage of depravity, prevalent among adults who have as their goal the acquisition of wealth or power.
Key words: concept, depravity, socialization, deception, hypocrisy.

PSYCHOLINGUISTIC ASPECT OF THE LEXEME “HEALTH”: DYNAMICS AND VARIABILITY

Abstract. Significant changes in the associative/psycholinguistic meaning of words occur approximately every 20 years under the influence of various political, economic and social factors. Events or phenomena that may be a “threat” to the basic concepts of culture have a particularly significant impact on people’s consciousness. The paper analyzes diachronic changes in the psycholinguistic meaning of the lexeme “health”, taking into account the influence of the coronavirus pandemic. The theoretical basis of the study is the theory of linguistic consciousness developed by the Moscow psycholinguistic school. The material of the comparative research includes dictionary entries from the Dictionary of Associative Norms of the Russian Language by A.A. Leontyev (1977), those from Russian Regional Associative Dictionary of the European Part of Russia (2014), and the results of an associative experiment conducted in Kaluga in the autumn of 2021 (during the fourth wave of the coronavirus infection pandemic). The author proves a quantitative and qualitative change in the associative meaning of the verbal unit under study. During the coronavirus pandemic, the image of “health” became more often associated with action and locus. These changes could be determined by the need to take measures to reduce the risk of the disease and improve the epidemiological situation in the country. The article notes a stable associative connection between the image of “health” and a more concrete object. The importance of the value of health for Russian linguistic consciousness has increased significantly. The individualism of the image is replaced by its universalism (emphasis on society). The analysis leads the author to a conclusion that the characteristic of the concept “health” becomes less significant but is also largely marked by positive connotations. The results obtained prove the dynamics and variability of the psycholinguistic meaning of the lexeme under study and are comparable to the results of similar studies.
Keywords: lexeme “health”, associative/psycholinguistic meaning of the word, concept, image of consciousness, associative experiment, associative dictionary, semantic gestalt, coronavirus infection.

EONIM AS A NEW LINGUISTIC TERM (GERMAN-BASED STUDY)

Abstract. The article discusses the rationale for the introduction of the new term “eonim” into linguistic science. In various studies it has multiple synonyms, such as symbol words, chronofact words, key words, key terms, key words of the current moment, key words of the era, etc. The research aims to identify and describe the features of eonims, i.e. lexical units that serve as markers of a historical era and reflect significant events in the cultural, social and political life of the country, based on the material of the German language. The subject of the study is lexemes selected from the annual rating lists “Word of the Year” and “Anti-Word of the Year” published by the German Language Society. The author compares the features of eonims in German-language discourse with the nine features of key words of the current moment presented in the work by T.V. Shmeleva. The step-by-step analysis makes it possible to identify the linguistic features and the word-forming potential of eonims, the features of pun hidden in their meaning, as well as the role of these units in the manifestation of linguistic reflection in various types of German-language discourse. The research confirms the hypothesis put forward by the author that in addition to marking events significant for society, eonims record new important elements of the linguocultural worldview, despite the constantly changing national linguistic consciousness. An empirical analysis of the eonims described in the article and their derivatives, which arise with a certain cyclicity, indicates that these units are capable of connecting historical events with each other and thus characterizing the dynamic development of society and language. Further analysis of eonims and the study of their hidden meanings will allow determining the most significant historical events and their perception by the speakers of a given linguistic and cultural community.
Keywords: language reflection, words of the year, linguoculturology, German language, eonims, chronofact word, keywords of the current moment.