Variants of the ‘underdog culture’ in Greek public opinion: soft and hard-core Russophilia

Abstract

Contemporary Russophilia is examined in this article as an outstanding feature of Greek political culture. Recent opinion polls (2016–2017) are used to validate a distinction between two different types of Russophilia: the soft, described as a positive predisposition towards Russia, and the hard-core, which suggests an embrace of Russia by breaking with Greece’s ties to the West. Hard-core Russophilia surfaces as a fitting element in Diamantouros’ underdog culture, as it uncovers sentiments of isolation, support for traditional values and fear towards Western values of modernity. The paper confirms the analytical capacity of the ‘cultural dualism’ framework, not as a dichotomy between modernizers and underdogs, but through the identification and measurement of different layers that outline the contemporary profile of hard-core Russophilia.