Images of the Past in the Light of the Stuart Hall's Model of Culture (Cultural Studies Research Tradition)
Authors:   Saint-Petersburg University of Management Technologies and Economics, Sankt-Peterburg, Russian Federation, Viracheva V.A. 
Published: February 2025

Introduction. In the Cultural Studies research tradition, the main goal is the conceptualization of the mass consumption society culture. Within the framework of this tradition, for the analysis of cultural transformations, S. Hall and his colleagues developed the “circle of culture” model: five elements - representation, production, consumption, regulation, identity - make up the system and influence each other. The analysis of objects or phenomena existing in Russian culture within the framework of the research model “circle of culture” allows us to identify the possibilities of this methodological approach, to test its effectiveness in the conditions of Russian society. The article examines how images of the past were perceived by Russian society in various periods of its history. Content. Within the framework of the “circle of culture” model, cultural changes can be considered as a violation of the equilibrium state in the cultural system. In the process of articulating the elements of the “circle of culture”, the system again reaches equilibrium, but at the same time its constituent elements acquire new meanings. To understand the essence of cultural change, it is necessary to determine the reasons for changing the roles and meanings of cultural elements. The study presents a philosophical and cultural analysis of the images of pre-revolutionary and post-revolutionary Russia that existed in the Soviet cultural environment of the 1920s and 1930s and are present in the public consciousness of modern Russia. The analysis is carried out on the basis of the “circle of culture” model in order to identify cultural changes in relation to these images occurring in Russian society. The objects of the study are analyzed each from the perspective of the five elements of the “circle of culture” model. Representation (images): how an object is perceived by society, what it is associated with in people's minds. Production: what means and methods are used to form the image of the object. Consumption: for what purpose the object is used. Regulation: how widespread is the image in the public consciousness. Identity: the connection of an object with belonging to a particular social group.

Conclusions. Comparing the differences in the images of the past revealed that: 1) the image of the revolution has become neutral after 100 years, since the ideas that gave rise to it have lost their relevance; 2) the negative component has left the image of pre-revolutionary Russia, and the positive one has become predominant; such a change is due to a significant temporary distance from modernity, the appearance of a large amount of information positive about pre-revolutionary Russia, as well as increased attention to the idea of patriotism. This study showed that the use of the “circle of culture” model makes it possible to effectively identify cultural changes taking place in society, give a generalized assessment of them, as well as analyze changes in individual areas.