Abstract
The author of this article analyzes representations of the image of a superhero in culture and politics of the 1990s - 2010s identifying the reasons for the interest in the image on the part of contemporary Russian youth. The aim of the study is to identify the areas of superhero model demanded in contemporary Russian culture and politics forming personal identity for young people and adolescents in everyday life. It was found out that with almost complete absence of superhero images in original literary and domestic cinematographic works for teenagers in Russia of the last decade, this model is demanded and actively embodied in the images of their amateur literary creativity (for example, in fanfics), in the international computer games industry, and implemented by young people in real life. The area of functioning of the images manifesting contemporary (and romantic) superhero model is most full: it is the sphere of today Russian politics, Russian films about sports of high achievements, musicals showing high achievements' sportsman as a superhero, young amateur literary creativity, everyday life of youth and teenagers. This study makes use of cross-cultural literature, pedagogy, sociology, psychology research, as well as lexics emerged within the youth environment to denote the new genres of subculture, already common in communication (fanfiс, stream).
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