The foundations of public opinion formation in the political thought of Alexander Semenovich Shishkov (1754-1841 AD)
Abstract
Public opinion greatly affects the formation of citizens' social and political attitudes and the extent to which they adopt certain ideas over others. Public opinion is formed by the language that individuals speak and the religion they profess, The two actors (language and religion) largely shape the values and customs of the individuals of one country and the extent of their interaction with the values and customs of societies in other countries. The set of foreign values and the extent of their adoption by the country's leaders threaten the system of laws and legislation proposed and enforced in that country. This is reflected in the formulation of public opinion and the political orientations of citizens. The study presents what are the most important foundations for the formation of Russian public opinion in Shishkov's political thought, and whether it had an impact at the time of crises and wars that the Russian state faced in his era. The study assumes that Shishkov focused on two important foundations for the formation of Russian public opinion in his time, which are language and religion, indicating the impact that each of them had on the formation of public opinion at the time of crises and wars that the Russian state faced during his reign and the birth of national identity from them to confront ideas and values coming from European civilization, especially French ones. In conclusion, the study concluded: The power of language and religion to shape public opinion and formulate the political orientations of the people of one state, and they are among the necessary needs of the age. There is an urgent need to awaken interest in the extent of the role that language and religion play in shaping public opinion and the broad influence on the creation of the national spirit in the hearts of citizens. As a result of the impact of the values and customs coming through contemporary technology.
