Hippie subculture echoes in Irina Bogatyrevas tale AutoSTOP

The hippie subculture has created a large amount of its own values, signs, symbols, ideas and folklore elements. In Russia the hippie movement, called sistiema, was a manifestation of mainstream-rejecting activities comparable to the Western countercultural movements of the 1960s. With the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the subculture significantly modified itself, but the developed traditions, practices and behaviors are still present among certain youth groups. A contemporary take on the hippie culture was presented by Irina Bogatyreva in her debut novel AutoSTOP (2005). This article attempts to analyze this text from the perspective of a continuation of the hippie culture. It also focuses on the contemporary aspects of putting into practice a "hippie utopia", considered as an alternative to the culture of consumption.