The Image of Russia and the Russians in the Work of Jacques Margeret

Abstract

The article analyzes the image of Russia and the Russians in the book of French Captain Jacques Margeret, who served as a mercenary in Russia in the Time of Troubles in the early 17th century. Research on the subject is missing in the scientific literature, although Margeret’s book was reprinted several times and there are many studies about it. The problem is considered from the standpoint of historical imagology, The emphasis is made on the circumstances of writing of this book, various influences. The author raises the question of the existence of ‟stereotypes of stereotypes,” i.e. prejudices, or certain trends in relation to Margeret’s opinions in the literature about him. The conclusions are as follows: 1) the book of Margeret has contributed to the deepening of perceptions of Muscovy in the French society; 2) in general, it contains much of objective information about the country, although not without controversy, emotional and subjective ratings; 3) in this book there is at least one major political tendency — the belief of the author in the Russian cultural backwardness in comparison with other European cultures and sympathy to those who, in his opinion, had a “civilizing” mission towards Russian people.

DOI 10.14258/izvasu(2017)5-24