TWO PUGACHEVS: PUNISHMENT AND PARDON IN RUSSIAN CULTURE

Abstract

In the given article the author speculates upon how punishment and pardon practices in Russian cultural tradition go together. From the author’s viewpoint, power resorts to both punishment and pardon for the benefits of political legitimation. In this case an act of authority compensates deficiency of legitimacy. Punishment and pardon practices are considered by the author in respect to the character of Pugachev created by A.S. Pushkin. Using the example of historical figure of Pugachev who had a literary “twin” in Pushkin’s work it is clearly seen that power holder uses the resources for articulating political punishment and pardon practices. High frequency of encouragement and enforcement alternating, from the author’s point of view, proves a special cultural tradition and characterizes a rebellious man in the Russian culture.