Comparative Study of the Image of Peter the Great as Presented in Educational Literature in the PRC, UK and USA.

Abstract

This article is the first comparative analysis of world history schoolbooks recommended for secondary educational establishments in the PRC, UK and USA. The aim is to determine and contrast the ways these didactic materials represent one of the most recognizable and impressive cultural symbols of Russia – Emperor Peter the Great. The choice of the sources for the analysis is explained by the fact that due to secondary education being compulsory in all three countries, the ‘school’ information about world history, including Russia, becomes available to wide masses of society, therefore influencing the image of Peter I formed by the population. Several aspects are taken into consideration – the amount of information offered in the books, the factual material itself, and the way the Russia of Peter the Great is described. Contrasting these makes it possible to reveal similarities and differences. The authors discover that the period of Peter the Great’s reign is included, if rather briefly, in the curricula of Chinese and American high schools, while no mentioning of it is found in history schoolbooks of the UK. Compilers of these books, both in China and the USA, seemingly strive to adhere to the principle of historical accuracy. As for some differences, the textbooks of the PRC acquaint readers with the historical material in a more uniformed way, offering a conceptually consistent ‘standard’ set of facts about Peter the Great, which, to some extent, corresponds to the current situation in the PRC, while the history schoolbooks of the USA are less standardized and motivate students to think critically.