How Russian Culture Has Influenced America

People may not realize that Russian culture does have an impact on the world. The rise of communism in Russia led to many countries throughout the world also adopting a communist government. Communism in Russia alone lasted over 70 years and led to the formation of the Soviet Union (USSR). Russia supported the development of communism in many countries and it is well known that there was great tension between Russia and the United States during the cold war years (1947 – 1991). Many countries had communist rule at some stage, including such as Afghanistan, Angola, Ethiopia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Bosnia, Vietnam and China, to name a few. At one stage about 30% of the world lived in countries with communist governments. This demonstrated how powerful the Russian culture was in impacting political systems of the world.

Russia and America

Russian culture has had a strong influence on the world, particularly on America. The performing arts is one area where Russia has had a big impact in America. From the ballet to figure skating and orchestra musicians, it has had an impact on America. Many American actors have also been influenced by Russian methods of acting and theater. For instance, Konstantin Stanislavsky developed a method of acting that was adopted by many famous American actors including such notable ones as Clint Eastwood and Jack Nicholson.

Michael Chekhov

This is another Russian who had a big impact on American theater and was actually an acting coach for Marilyn Monroe. American directors such as Francis Ford Coppola found inspiration in the works of such Russian film directors as Sergei Eisenstein. Literature from Russian authors also had a worldwide impact. For instance, authors like Leon Tolstoy had a big global impact with his books “War and Peace” and “Anna Karenina”. Another author of great importance who wrote the famous “Crime and Punishment” was the Russian author Fyodor Dostoevsky. Russia clearly had a global impact on the arts and literature.

Russia and The Space Race

Russia was also an integral player in the space race. America was intent on outcompeting Russia when it came to space exploration, and was inspired to do so when they saw what Russia had achieved. Russia was the first country to launch a satellite, namely Sputnik I in 1957. This motivated America and NASA to work harder to make strides in their exploration plans. Russia was also the first country to put a human in space. Yuri Gagarin was the first person to be launched into space in 1961. Once the Soviet Union broke apart in 1991, the United States and Russia decided to cooperate when it came to space exploration. There is no doubt that both countries and the rest of the world have actually benefited from this cooperation. Today this pact between Russia and the United States still exists and it is in fact the Russian R-7 rockets that help launch astronauts into space on their way to the international space station. Russian culture has certainly had a major influence on the world and is sure to continue to shape the world in the future.

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