Baranovskaia, T.V. 2026. Resilience of Social Habitus as an Adap-tation Factor among the Ethnic Nobility in the Russian Empire (Late 19th — Ear-ly 20th Century): Evidence from the Biography of K. F. Baranovsky. Herald of Anthropology 2: 391–410.

Текст статьи на сайте журнала URL: https://journals.iea.ras.ru/vestantrop/article/view/1769 (дата обращения 07.07.2026)

Abstract

This article presents a study of the adaptation strategies of the Belarusian nobility during a pivotal period of socio-political transformations in the 20th century through a case study—reconstructing the biography of a representative of the class. The study utilizes biographical, historical-genetic, and comparative methods, drawing on formal biographical, narrative sources, and personal documents. Methodologically, the causes and consequences of the choice of adaptation strategies are analyzed within the institutional approach and field theory. It is noted that the range of adaptive behavior options of the studied class is linked to the habitus of the Belarusian noble social group. The article reveals the socio-historical features of the class's formation, as well as the value orientations and traditions inherent in the dispositions of this group's habitus and assimilated by its members during the period of socialization. The institutional structure, which underwent revolutionary changes in the 20th century, caused frustration and social maladjustment among the Belarusian nobility. The behavioral strategies they implemented often led to a decline in quality of life, status, and economic positions, and jeopardized physical survival. It is argued that one of the reasons for the Belarusian nobles' choice of irrational adaptation strategies was the dialectical contradiction between habitus dispositions internalized in other institutional settings and the new institutional reality. In a situation of choice, this led to the dominance of tradition over rationality. The characteristics of the Belarusian nobles' habitus are analyzed as factors limiting the adaptive capabilities of their representatives to a radically changed social environment. The factors and conditions that facilitated the restoration of rational perception in the face of forced adaptation are revealed