Abstract
<jats:p>The study aims to identify the theoretical and methodological foundations for conceptualizing representations of the past as a form of social knowledge in the context of the correlation between the politics of memory and the phenomenon of identity. The article examines the identity crisis as a result of the growing complexity of social relations and the destabilization of social knowledge. The politics of memory, which serves as a tool for regulating representations of the past, is conceptualized as a phenomenon arising from the emergence of alternative versions of the past. The scientific novelty of the research lies in the fact that representations of the past are analyzed not as a collection of historical facts, but as a form of social knowledge. This approach contributes to a deeper understanding of the mechanisms of the socio historical construction of reality and helps identify the functional relationship among the destabilization of historical memory, the identity crisis, and the actualization of the politics of memory. The new scientific knowledge obtained in the course of the study is the substantiation of the thesis that the politics of memory is not merely a tool of ideological influence, but also a mechanism for reconstructing social knowledge about the past, aimed at overcoming the identity crisis under conditions of informational instability. The study establishes that the identity crisis caused by the destabilization of representations of the past actualizes the politics of memory as a mechanism for reconstructing historical knowledge and ensuring the stability of collective identity in an increasingly complex social reality. As a practical example of this approach, the paper puts forward the concept of the national idea of modern Russia, which is based on traditional values and interethnic interests.</jats:p>