{"id":10131,"date":"2026-02-21T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10131"},"modified":"2025-10-12T13:29:52","modified_gmt":"2025-10-12T13:29:52","slug":"looking-at-mihhail-lotmans-article-2017-history-as-geography-part-7-of-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10131","title":{"rendered":"Looking at Mihhail Lotman’s Article (2017) “History as Geography”\u00a0\u00a0(Part 7 of 8)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

0811 The author now introduces a typology of cultural betweenness<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two antithetical mechanisms<\/em> constitute the basis of Russian identity3a<\/sub> and will1a<\/sub><\/em>.  One concerns sovereignty (that is, “official consciousness”).  The other concerns my relations to others, including my most private self (that is “private consciousness”).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This implies an esse_ce and essence of official consciousness<\/em> and an entanglement with the esse_ce of private consciousness<\/em>.  Russian identity3a<\/sub> and will1a<\/sub><\/em> resonates with the form of official and private consciousness<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0812 Here is a picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

0813 If geography<\/em> orients my official consciousness<\/em> as form<\/em> (B) and if my truth<\/em> goes with my private consciousness as form<\/em> (D), then I may conclude, along with the author, that form<\/em> (B) entangles matter<\/em> (D) in an ambivalent and complicated manner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0814 A split reality<\/em> resides “in between” B and D when my Russian identity3a<\/sub> (A) is the focus of attention and my Russian will1a<\/sub> (C) speaks against {what I say2a<\/sub><\/em> as matter [substantiating] my official consciousness as form} (B).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0815 What contrasts with my Russian identity3a<\/sub> (A)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is what I say2aom<\/sub> [substantiating] my official consciousness2af<\/sub> (B).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What contrasts with my Russian will1a <\/sub>(C)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is my private consciousness2af<\/sub> entangling what I think2a<\/sub><\/em> (D).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0816 Here is the corresponding Greimas square, once again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

According to the rules of the Greimas square, my Russian will1a<\/sub> (C) complements my Russian identity3a<\/sub> (A), just as my private consciousness (D) complements my official consciousness (B).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0817 I remind myself that the topic<\/em> is a typology of cultural betweenness<\/em>.  The author offers three types of cultural relations:<\/em> interaction, alliance and identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0818 Do these three types fit into the Greimas square pictured above?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is my guess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Oh, it looks like I have one association too many.  Cognition<\/em> is not on the list of types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, it may belong to interaction<\/em>.  Cognition<\/em> is like matter.  Interaction<\/em> is like form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0819 Plus, I have an odd substitute for D, one which throws me back to points 0015-0017.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0820 There is a historical progression in imagination, where “imagination” corresponds to {my private consciousness” as form [entangling] what I think as matter} (D).   “My private consciousness” is the esse_ce entangled by the essence of my official consciousness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The long historical progression goes from pagan narod (1), to Christian narod under sovereign rule (2), to an atheist people (3), to a Christian people (4).  This progression comports with Comments on Alexander Dugin’s (2012) Fourth Political Theory,<\/em> by Razie Mah, available at smashwords and other e-book venues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0821 In the above figure, D comports with the third step: an atheist people<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ironically, this (3) is where both Juri Lotman and Boris Uspenskij operate during the 1950s through the 1980s, while they both construct a “scientific” mode of interpretation that transcends both “Soviet” and “Socialist” labels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, times have changed (4).  So, this examiner can risk putting in a qualifier that comports with the philosophy of Alexander Dugin<\/em> (4).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0822 The author offers a table listing how political theorists express identity (A), cognition (B), interaction (B) and alliance (C).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0823 Identity (A) concerns Russian civilization (identity writ large<\/em>) in relation to other civilizations.  Expressions by political theorists include incomparability, identifying with the industrious West, identifying with the mysterious East, and synthetically identifying with the best of Eurasia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0824 Interaction (B) concerns how um… “cognition”… passes in and out of Russia.  Expressions by political theorists<\/em>entail cognitive flows in both directions.  <\/em>Cognitive flow from the industrious West or mysterious East may involve servile interactions.  Isolation combats servitude.  Cognitive flow without interaction, I suppose, goes without comprehension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mimicry is the highest form of flattery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0825 Alliances (C) form in order to maintain civilizational identity (A).  Expressions by political theorists include alliances with the industrious West or with the mysterious East, as well as isolation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0826 Amazingly, Lotman’s analysis applies to Russia’s political conundrum in the mid-2020s<\/em> (see point 0002).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe Russia needs space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oh, what am I saying.  Russia has space!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

0811 The author now introduces a typology of cultural betweenness. Two antithetical mechanisms constitute the basis of Russian identity3a and will1a.  One concerns sovereignty (that is, “official consciousness”).  The other concerns my relations to others, including my most private self (that is “private consciousness”). This implies an esse_ce and essence of official consciousness and an entanglement with the esse_ce of private consciousness.  Russian identity3a and will1a resonates […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[418],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10131","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article-review"],"yoast_head":"\nLooking at Mihhail Lotman's Article (2017) "History as Geography"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 7 of 8) - An Archaeology of the Fall<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10131\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Looking at Mihhail Lotman's Article (2017) "History as Geography"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 7 of 8) - An Archaeology of the Fall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"0811 The author now introduces a typology of cultural betweenness. 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