The role of Orthodox faith in the process of economic development of Siberia in the 17th - early 20th centuries

The paper presents the major sub-cultures developing in Siberia for centuries: the Cossack Democratic libertines, the traditional peasant way of life, entrepreneurial subculture, aristocratic-bureaucratic world, radical commoners. The vast majority of the population of Siberia were peasants (90%), so the most common way of life in the region was the traditional peasant way of life. It is characterized by conservatism, a desire to preserve the traditional standards of life, and the collective (community) ideals. In practice, it was expressed in the inability of the peasant to imagine the life outside of the peasant community. The history of the Siberian merchants who were one of the main participants in the bourgeois relations shows that most entrepreneurs had extraordinary volitional and intellectual personal qualities. The basis of their activities, the main motive and purpose of their lives was the desire to become richer. In the merchants' opinion these tendency were rather natural and justifiable, which distinguished them from other classes. One of the main characteristics of the noble estates subculture was the tendency to laziness and idleness, to the type of behaviour when the sensual pleasure and gambling were in the foreground. There was a felicitous remark of P.A. Slovzov about such a way of life in Siberia that the land ownership of the local official fits in the flowerpot, whereas craving for the pleasures of life was boundless. Bureaucrats' interest in the service was limited to formal fulfillment of their duties, obtaining Siberian salary addition and brevet. Additional revenues were not considered crimes, especially income from the guilty farmers and local merchants, the main thing was not to be noticed at the time of receiving bribes. In view of education and their active life position intelligent people, not noble by origin and of various ranks, were able to influence widely the public through both their professional activities (teaching, journalism, advocacy, etc.) and in a private way, in conversations, through their work in the social and political institutions. Thus, by the analysis of subcultures formed on the bases of everyday consciousness, it is possible to make some conclusions about the varied and eventful life in the Siberian region of the 19th -early 20th centuries. The period of traditional subcultures (the Cossacks, the peasants and the nobles) was partially replaced under the influence of time by the new subcultures (businessmen and people of various ranks), which had a perspective. However, their implementation was not fully worked out due to the diversity of social and psychological orientations, because of the abandonment of the Orthodox faith by intellectuals and other classes, which was the foundation in uniting people.

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