Analyzing relevant historical experience, both world-wide and Russian, the author discusses the role and significance of ideologies for the formation of a spectrum of political parties. The sources of the difficulties of ideological self-identification of Russian political parties are, in particular, cleared up in the article. Since Russia has not yet realized modernization, the author maintains, the development of ideological modes of political communication happens to be quite “phasic” for the country. The conclusion is made that political parties are in Russia the main subjects of ideological creative work, it is they who are first of all capable of stimulating «inter-level» communications concerning purposes and values. If their ideological function fails to be realized, there remains just the alternative: either the creation of “state ideology”, or the orientation on “pragmatism” of the power, i.e. the alternative excluding civil society from any dialogue on the above problems.