Day of Russia, which we celebrate on June 12, is not just a red date on the calendar. It's an opportunity to view our country as part of the global cultural landscape. Often left out is the question: what has Russia given the world besides ballet, vodka, and a satellite? And what has the world given us? In this text, we will try to move away from the usual bombast and talk about how Russian culture has fitted into the global mosaic, enriched it, and changed itself under its influence. Day of Russia: why June 12? On June 12, 1990, the Declaration on the State Sovereignty of the RSFSR was adopted. Initially, the holiday was called Day of Independence, but the name did not catch on - it was too strongly associated with politics and reminded of the disintegration of the USSR. In 2002, it was renamed to Day of Russia. Today, it is a symbol of unity, but in the context of world culture, June 12 is also a day when we can ponder: what is universal in our culture? What is understandable to a Japanese, a Brazilian, a Frenchman? The answer: more than we think. Russian literature as a global code Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Chekhov - these names do not need translation. "War and Peace" is read in American colleges, "Crime and Punishment" is included in the lists of mandatory reading in China, and Chekhov's plays are performed in theaters in Africa. Why? Because Russian classics spoke about the eternal: sin, atonement, freedom, money, power. These are universal themes. The Day of Russia is a good occasion to remember that our literature has become part of the global canon. Without it, Western modernism would have been different, there would have been no existentialism of Camus and Sartre. Not surprisingly, Nabokov (though an emigrant) wrote in two languages, and Brodsky became the U.S. Poet Laureate. Russian ballet: from imperial luxury to modern choreography Russian ballet is a brand that is recognized everywhere. The Diaghilev seasons in Paris at the beginning of the 20th c ... Read more