Russia ’s “Narodnik”

Russia ’s “народник”in the middle and late 19th century is an earlier example of the term “populism” and one of the important origins of the concept of populism.Alexander Herzen，the Founder of the Russian populism，believed that “the people” are the holders of traditional culture and the founders of Russia ’s future，and that intellectuals should“join the people” to find their own positions and rely on the people to launch revolution.As influenced by him，young Russian students launched a movement called “Join the People” in 1874，and the name“народни” （populists） then came into being.The first use of the term“populism”^[4] in China was also closely linked with Russia ’s “Populists”and their ideology.^[5] Russia ’s “Populists” advocated “the people” （mainly referring to farmers and poor laborers），idealized “the people” and their village communities，and pursued direct transition to socialism through Russia ’s unique village community roadmap and bypassing the stage of capitalist development.^[6] Because of this，Russia ’s populism is regarded as the “utopian socialism” or the “agricultural socialism”.Starting from the specific context of Russia ’s populism，many domestic researchers believe that the core idea of populism is to “surpass the capitalist Caudine Forks”.^[7]