Red Orientalism: Mikhail Pavlovich and Marxist Oriental Studies In Early Soviet Russia

Abstract

Marxist Oriental Studies in early Soviet Russia emerged in opposition to the

Историография Российского Ориентализма: К Вопросу О Методологии Исследования

“…Из ряда работ, опубликованных в США и Великобритании, выделяются публикации, принадлежащие перу профессиональных востоковедов, в которых также затрагиваются проблемы российского восприятия Востока и азиатских сообществ. Последние публикации известного германского исследователя Михаэла Кемпера, автора целого ряда работ по суфизму и адату в Поволжье и на Северном Кавказе, посвящены российскому и советскому ориентализму [Kemper, 2005;Kemper, 2008;Kemper, 2009;Kemper, 2010]. М. Кемпер выступил соредактором сборника статей, посвященных истории советского востоковедения [The Heritage of the Soviet Oriental Studies, 2011].…”

Russia's Islam: Discourse on Identity, Politics, and Security

“…Russia's traditional ambivalence toward Muslims and the East persisted. On one hand, Soviet Oriental studies, heavily dominated by Ljucian Klimovich's derogatory and aggressive positions (Kemper 2009), became a tool to demonstrate Muslims' backwardness and legitimize the regime's forceful actions of secularization and modernization (Kemper 2010(Kemper , 2009Sartori 2010;Khalid 2007Khalid , 1998Ro'i 1984; see also Bodansky 1984).…”

“…Its apparent triumph, however, could not conceal the strong prejudice of Soviet elites about the "backwardness" of the Muslim peoples of the Union, which was at the origin of harsh campaigns for the eradication of traditional customs, including, of course, religious beliefs (Kemper 2010(Kemper , 2009Ro'i 1984).…”

“…"Sovietization" -a parallel to imperial "Russification" -took place with a series of impositions, from the mandatory adoption of the Cyrillic alphabet to the prohibition of wearing headscarves, the forced emancipation of women, and the prohibition of every public expression of cult (Kemper 2009;Ro'i 1984). Domestic and international political factors, similar to those faced by the Empire, induced the Soviet regime, from time to time, to relax its rigid atheist stance, and to allow very few local Islamic institutions to operate legally, even if not freely (Kemper 2009;Khalid 2007aKhalid , 1998Ro'i 1984). By doing so, the Soviet Union aimed to create a tighter social cohesion among its Muslim citizens.…”

“…At the same time, a more accommodating policy allowed the Soviet regime to appear in front of Muslim countries as a friendly power. However, while some observers note that the Soviet approach was, indeed, part of a process of decolonization from Russian Empire's dominance (Khalid 2007), Soviet Orientalism maintained, in its theorizations, a very aggressive and derogatory stance toward Muslims and their "backwardness" (Kemper 2010). …”