Echoes of Berlin, 1989: Post-Soviet Discourse and the Rhetoric of National Unity

David Cratis Williams Florida Atlantic University ; Marilyn J. Young Florida Atlantic University

Abstract

ABSTRACT Just as the popular imagination became inflamed by the events of 1989, and the “fall of the wall” was commonly taken as a sign of the inevitability of a new, open, free, and democratic Eastern Europe, so too was the disintegration of the Soviet Union in December of 1991 taken as a sign of the inevitability of a new, open, free, and democratic Russia. Although the events in Berlin were significant in spurring changes onward, with different rhetorical choices by Soviet and Russian leaders along the way history could have been written quite differently. The central concern of this article is to show how these rhetorical choices shaped the future of post-Communist transition in the Russian Federation. We proceed chronologically, examining key moments in the rhetoricity of the Russian transition from Communism toward its current form of governance.

Journal
Advances in the History of Rhetoric
Published
2015-04-13
DOI
10.1080/15362426.2015.1010865
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
Closed
Topics
Export

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (1)

  1. Rhetoric Review

References (43) · 3 in this index

  1. Metaphors of Dictatorship and Democracy: Change in the Russian Political Lexicon and the …
  2. 1989!
  3. An Array of Mini-Parties Wage Futile Parliamentary Campaigns
    Transitions
  4. Signs of a Positive Nationalism for an Emerging Russia
  5. The Second Persona
    Quarterly Journal of Speech  
Show all 43 →
  1. Fence Around the Empire: The Censorship of Foreign Books in Nineteenth-Century Russia
  2. Case History of an Unfree Press
  3. The Influence of the Press in Support of the Party [Партийное воздействие прессы]
  4. Bakhtin’s Carnival as Part of Democratic Elections: A Reexamination
    Controversia
  5. Russian Electoral Politics and the Search for National Identity
    Argumentation and Advocacy  
  6. The Future’s Foundation in a Contested Past: Nostalgia and Dystalgia in the 1996 Russian …
    Southern Communication Journal  
  7. We’ll Guarantee Freedom When We Can Afford It: The Free Market, the Russian Constitution,…
    Controversia
  8. Vladimir Zhirinovskii: The Clown Prince of Russia
    Controversia
  9. The Birth of the Propaganda State: Soviet Methods of Mass Mobilization, 1917–1929
  10. Kovalev, Vladimir . 2000. “Yakovlev Leads Hunt for Nation’s Symbols.” St. Petersburg Times, October…
  11. The Sinking of the Kursk: A Soviet Response to a Russian Tragedy
  12. The 1996 Russian Presidential Election: A Case Study of Boris Yeltsin’s Campaign Rhetoric
  13. Contemporary Rhetorical Theory: A Reader
  14. “Boris Yeltsin: Starting with Good Intentions” [Борис Ельцин: Старт между благими намерениями]
    Segodnya [Севодня]
  15. Presidential Arguments in Post-Soviet Russia: An Enthymematic Return to National Identity…
  16. The ‘Ideograph’: A Link Between Rhetoric and Ideology
    Quarterly Journal of Speech  
  17. Putin, Vladimir . 2000a. “Annual Address to the Federal Assembly.” July 8. Official English version…
  18. First Person: An Astonishingly Frank Self-Portrait by Russia’s President
  19. “Open Letter to the Voters of Russia.”
  20. Putin, Vladimir . 2002. “Annual Address to the Federal Assembly.” April 18. Official English versio…
  21. Putin, Vladimir . 2003. “Annual Address to the Federal Assembly.” May 16. Official English version …
  22. Putin, Vladimir . 2004. “Inaugural Address” [Обращение к гражданам страны при вступлении в должност…
  23. “Russia Prepares for the Second Round of the Presidential Election.” Analytical Brief 1.2…
  24. The Struggle to Create Post-Cold War Europe
  25. Russia’s Parliamentary Elections 1993 and 1995
  26. “Central Power in Russia’s Genes, Putin Says.”
  27. Tyler, Patrick E. 2000. “Putin Pushes Soviet Hymn, Creating Disharmony.” New York Times,…
  28. Whittell, Giles . 2001. “God Ousts Stalin in Russia’s Revamped Anthem.” The Times (London), January…
  29. Advances in the History of Rhetoric
  30. Argumentation
  31. “Citizen Putin: Presidential Argument and the Invitation to (Democratic) Citizenship.”
  32. Managing ‘Democracy’ in the Age of Terrorism: Putin, Bush, and Arguments from Definition
  33. The New/Old Russian National Symbols as Arguments for Identity Transformation: ‘Reviving …
  34. Russian National Identity as Argument Construction: An Assessment of Political Transforma…
  35. Rossijskie vesti
  36. Flights of Fancy, Flight of Doom: KAL 007 and Soviet-American Rhetoric
  37. Argumentation
  38. “Analysis of Political Argumentation and Party Campaigning Prior to the 1993 and 1995 Sta…
    Politia [Полития]