-
The problem of subjectivity in the works of Evald Ilyenkov and Slavoj Žižek Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-04-09 Natalya Listratenko
This article deals with the theme of subjectivity. One of the most pressing questions today is what theoretical and practical efforts should be made to avoid being a powerless tool in the hands of others and under what conditions one’s own “subjective opinion” becomes the real, reliable fulcrum as far as purposeful activity, free and reasonable goal-setting are concerned. The desire to derive subjectivity
-
Towards understanding the nature of theology in the thought of Frs. S. N. Bulgakov, G. V. Florovsky and the Venerable Sophrony Sakharov Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-04-04
Abstract This paper focuses on what can be said to be the definitive features of the approach to theology by three Russian theologians: Fathers Sergii Bulgakov and Georges Florovsky as well as the Venerable Father Sophrony Sakharov. The article argues that the following common themes characterize the nature of their theology. First, personalism, in other words, the use of the term “person”, which they
-
“The Polish question” in the correspondence of Prince Evgenii Nikolaevitch Troubetzkoy and Marian Zdziechowski Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-02-29 Gennadii Aliaiev
The paper analyzes the correspondence between Prince Evgenii Troubetzkoy and Marian Zdziechowski, from 1905–1916 (not yet published). The correspondence focuses on the question of Russian-Polish relations and the possibility of Poland’s autonomy within the Russian Empire or the restoration of Poland’s independence. With the clarification of these two thinkers’ positions on the “Polish question,” the
-
Religion in Alexandre Kojève’s atheistic philosophy of science Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-03-01
Abstract This paper focuses on Kojève’s account of history and philosophy of science. Kojève’s understanding of science can be characterized as internalism, which is evident in his holistic view of philosophy, theology, quantum physics, and the history of classical Newtonian mechanics. It precipitates the facilitation of a further inquiry into the Christian genesis, secular evolution, and subsequent
-
Ukraine, language policies and liberalism: a mixed second act Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-02-12 Joseph Place, Judas Everett
This article analyses Ukraine’s language policies from 2002 to 2022 within a framework of liberalism, while avoiding making normative judgements or recommendations, updating the discussion raised in Kymlicka and Opalski’s Can Liberal Pluralism be Exported? The analysis takes into consideration Ukraine’s present and historic position, including the challenge that postcolonial nation building can pose
-
Evald Ilyenkov’s legacy in Ukraine Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-02-07
Abstract This article is dedicated to the philosophical legacy of Evald Ilyenkov in Soviet and post-Soviet Ukraine. The authors use the example of Ilyenkov and his legacy to show how drastically different the philosophical situation was in Soviet Ukraine in order to present a holistic viewpoint on Soviet philosophy. The authors highlight the differences between the political and philosophical circumstances
-
The Different Senses of the Word Intuition Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-02-05 Nikolai O. Lossky, Frédéric Tremblay
This is a translation from Bulgarian into English of Nikolai Lossky’s “Razlichniiat smisul na dumata intuitsiia” (“The Different Senses of the Word Intuition”), published in the Sofianite journal Filosofski pregled (Philosophical Review), 1931, year III, book 1, pp. 1–9. In this article, solicited by the journal’s editor-in-chief, the Bulgarian philosopher Dimitar Mihalchev, Lossky surveys the different
-
Ilyenkov and Vygotsky on imagination Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-01-24 David Bakhurst
This paper explores Ilyenkov’s conception of imagination as it is expressed in his writings on aesthetics and in his 1968 book Ob idolakh i idealakh (Of Idols and Ideals). Ilyenkov deemed imagination and creativity to be central to the character of distinctively human forms of mental activity. After examining the many different contexts in which Ilyenkov sees imagination at work—from the most basic
-
Moral philosophy in the USSR: key trends of change Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-01-24 Ruben Apressyan
Ethics in the USSR revived in the middle of the twentieth century after more than twenty years of silence. The impetus for the development of research and teaching in this area was given by the supreme power, which considered ethics as one of the more effective tools of state propaganda, corresponding to the new social realities. But pretty soon, the very logic of research immersion in the subject
-
Analytic patristics Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-01-15 Paweł Rojek
Georges Florovsky, in 1936, called for a revival of the teaching of the Church Fathers. At the same time, Fr. Joseph Bocheński formulated the program for the renewal of Thomism by means of formal logic. In this paper, I propose to integrate these two projects. Analytic Patristics aims at expressing and developing patristic thought with the tools of analytic philosophy. The broad program of the logic
-
Pessimism, Schopenhauer, and Schopenhauerianism in nineteenth century Romania. The case of the poet Mihai Eminescu Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-01-05 Ştefan Bolea, Ştefan-Sebastian Maftei
This article discusses the influence that Schopenhauer’s thought had on Mihai Eminescu’s work with reference to the idea of “pessimism.” It also considers Schopenhauer’s influence on Romanian philosophy and literature at the end of the nineteenth century. We shall examine Eminescu’s alleged “Schopenhauerian pessimism,” considering firstly “pessimism” as a part of Eminescu’s “myth.” Secondly, we shall
-
Translation of Evald Ilyenkov, “Notes on Wagner” Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-01-03 Evald Ilyenkov, Isabel Jacobs
-
Introduction to Evald Ilyenkov, “Notes on Wagner” Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-01-03 Isabel Jacobs
-
The theological program of Fr. Georges Florovsky from the Russian perspective Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2024-01-02 Petr B. Mikhaylov
The theological program of Archpriest Georges Florovsky is understood as a conception of the neopatristic synthesis that he developed. From the beginning, its appearance was associated with the participation of its creator in a public discussion about the historical ways of Russia within the framework of the Eurasian movement, then, with his scientific investigations into the history of Russian Orthodoxy
-
Two types of Orthodox theological personalism: Vasily Zenkovsky and Vladimir Lossky Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-12-22
Abstract The article attempts to compare personalist aspects in the works of Vasily Zenkovsky and Vladimir Lossky. It is shown that two types of philosophical personalism (metaphysical and existentialist) in the history of Russian thought set the framework for two types of theological personalism presented respectively by Zenkovsky and Lossky. The philosophy of Lev Lopatin was the important source
-
Alexander Scriabin as a Russian Cosmist Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-12-07 Ali Yansori
In the secondary literature on Scriabin, it is not uncommon to come across the names of philosophers such as Nikolai Fyodorov, Vladimir Solovyov, and Nikolai Berdyaev. The present paper examines the shared characteristics between Scriabin’s philosophy and the ideas of such figures who are typically referred to as Russian Cosmists. In doing so, the paper illustrates what new insights we can gain by
-
Nikolai Lossky, Dimitar Mihalchev, and Rehmkeanism Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-11-21 Frédéric Tremblay
The philosophy of Johannes Rehmke (1848–1930), also called “Rehmkeanism,” and the intuitivism of Nikolai Lossky (1870–1965) converge on essential doctrinal points. The Bulgarian philosopher Dimitar Mihalchev (1880–1967), who studied under Rehmke in Greifswald, became a promoter of the Rehmkean philosophy in Bulgaria. The points of convergence between Rehmkeanism and Losskyan intuitivism led Mihalchev
-
Russian philosophy and the question of its exceptional nature Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-11-21 Marina F. Bykova
This essay addresses one of the most concerning features of Russian thought: its claim to exceptionality. The author contends that the notion of Russian distinctiveness and exceptionality has reverberated consistently throughout Russian intellectual discussions. In contemporary Russia, these debates have heightened, often taking on a distinctly political character. The essay highlights the perilous
-
Wholeness and totalitarianism Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-11-17 Vladimir Marchenkov
This brief paper is a polemical response to Mikhail Epstein’s review of the Palgrave Handbook of Russian Thought, and especially to his claim that the widely acknowledged tendency of Russian philosophy towards holistic thinking is akin to political totalitarianism, not to say its underlying cause. My argument is that philosophical and political or ideological thought are fundamentally different in
-
Rethinking The Philosophers’ Steamboat: the tragedy of Sergei Bulgakov Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-11-08 Olga Lyanda-Geller
Among those included in the lists of being sent out in 1922 as part of the “Philosophers’ Steamboat,” there was Sergei Nikolayevich (Father Sergius) Bulgakov (1871–1944). Prior to his deportation, Bulgakov, after many years of struggle, reunited his philosophical and theological journeys. This is reflected in his dialogues and essays, in particular, in At the Feast of the Gods and At the Walls of Chersonesus
-
Georges Florovsky and St. Justin Popović: brothers in arms for the Neopatristic synthesis Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-27 Vladimir Cvetković
The aim of this paper is to offer an overview of the long-lasting friendship between Georges Florovsky and St. Justin Popović, as well as their common project to build an Orthodox theological synthesis on the basis of the patristic tradition. The paper focuses on three periods from Florovsky’s and Popović’s lives, from late 1910 to early 1920, from the late 1920s to late 1930s, and finally into the
-
Vratislav Effenberger’s conception of the role of imagination in ideological thought Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-26 Šimon Wikstrøm Svěrák
This paper explores the core characteristics of Vratislav Effenberger’s theoretical system, highlighting his perspective on the significance of imagination in ideological thinking. It provides background and an overview of Effenberger’s concept of ideology, outlines the Surrealist notion of imagination, and presents the author’s methodological connection of Surrealism, psychoanalysis, and Prague Structuralism
-
Nicholas Afanasiev and his neo-patristic approach Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-25 Daniel Kisliakov
As part of the work to “transcend the dichotomy” of the “two schools” of the Russian Religious Renaissance, the study of individual theologians reveals different approaches to theological synthesis. The present paper is a study of Nicholas Afanasiev’s patristic engagement and the specifics of his approach to neo-patristics. Two ecclesiological conceptions emerged as consistent themes in his work: eucharistic
-
Politics, power, and bureaucracy through the lens of the conceptological approach: reflections on Viktor P. Makarenko, Sobranie sochineniy v 5 tomakh [Collected Works in 5 vols.]. Rostov-na-Donu; Taganrog: Izdatel’stvo Yuzhnogo Federal’nogo Universiteta, 2021 Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-24 Sergey G. Chukin
Historical experience shows that politics, despite all its shortcomings, is the best tool created by people to organize the common life of large groups of the population and manage them. Therefore, the desire of thinkers of all times and peoples to obtain knowledge about politics is understandable, which, in its rigor, clarity, and accuracy of forecast, would be comparable to scientific knowledge.
-
Bulgakov’s sophiology and the neopatristic synthesis Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-25 Josephien H. J. van Kessel
In 1922, many representatives of the Russian Intelligentsia, including many philosophers, were exiled from the young soviet state. Many left with the so-called Philosophy Steamer (Chamberlain in The philosophy steamer: Lenin and the exile of the intelligensia (2006) Atlantic Books). The exiled philosophers tried to go on with their previous professional lives in cities as Prague, Berlin and Paris.
-
De-imperializing Joseph Brodsky: “On the independence of Ukraine” and other poems Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-20 Andrei Desnitsky
This article discusses the poem written by Joseph Brodsky shortly after the proclamation of Ukrainian independence in the early 1990s. It compares this poem with other pieces by the same author that deal with the paradigm of “independence vs. imperial unity.” These poems present a difference, which is striking at first glance: Brodsky welcomes Lithuanian independence, while simultaneously denying the
-
Natalie Duddington and perceptual knowledge of other minds Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-18 Harry James Moore
This paper concerns the Russian émigrée translator and philosopher Natalie Duddington (1886–1972). By establishing Duddington’s dependence on Nicholas Lossky (1870–1965), the paper argues that Duddington formed a unique synthesis of Russian intuitivism and British realism in her essay ‘Our Knowledge of Other Minds’. Despite the historical significance of Duddington’s work, it will be concluded that
-
False contradiction: a critique of Immanuel Kant’s transcendental dialectic in the Kantian thought of Valentin Asmus Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-12 Diana Gasparyan
Valentin Asmus made a significant contribution to the formation of key interpretations, analyses and evaluations of Immanuel Kant’s work in the Russian-Soviet tradition of studying the “history of foreign philosophy”. This article shows precisely which principles and developmental models Asmus laid down in his interpretation of the transcendental dialectic section of Kant’s philosophical system. The
-
Mikhail Bakhtin and Lev Shestov on Dostoevsky: the unfinalized dialogue Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-10-11 Marina G. Ogden
Bakhtin’s view of the history of the novel, through the lens of Dostoevsky’s writing in his famous study on Dostoevsky’s poetics (1963), has had a significant impact on the way we read Dostoevsky today. On the other hand, Shestov’s original explorations of the human soul, which were drawn on his reading of Dostoevsky and made a lasting impression on his contemporaries, are still relatively unknown
-
Robert Saudek’s graphology in the light of Fritz Mauthner’s critique of language Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-09-12 Jakub Mácha
-
The ideas of the Scottish Enlightenment in Russia: Adam Smith and Semyon Efimovich Desnitskii on the philosophy of history Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-09-13 Ondrej Marchevský, Sandra Zákutná
The paper focuses on the mutual interaction as well as the impact of the Scottish Enlightenment on the formation of the Enlightenment in Russia during the reign of Catherine the Great. It focuses on the relationship between the work of Adam Smith and Semyon Efimovich Desnitskii, who, thanks to Desnitskii’s studies at the University of Glasgow, got to know each other as teacher and student. The central
-
Towards the future of Orthodox theology: Bulgakov and cyborg enhancement technology Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-08-30 Walter N. Sisto
The relationship between the Sophiology of Sergius Bulgakov and the neo-patristic movement within Orthodoxy is well-known. The neo-patristic synthesis won the day, and it is the dominant theological tradition within Orthodoxy. It is time for a serious reappraisal of Bulgakov’s theology by the Orthodox and non-Orthodox Christian theologians because Christian theology is faced with a looming bioethical
-
The concept of creativity in Georges Florovsky’s thought Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-08-24 Kåre Johan Mjør
This article discusses the meanings of “creativity”—tvorchestvo—as we encounter it in Georges Florovsky’s thought, first and foremost in his magnum opus Ways of Russian Theology (1937). Tvorchestvo had by this time become a key concept in Russian pre-revolutionary and later émigré thought. It is associated above all with Nikolai Berdyaev’s philosophy, but it also plays an important role in Sergei Bulgakov’s
-
Introduction to Alexandre Kojève’s “Moscow, August 1957” Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-08-17 Isabel Jacobs
-
The paradoxical anchoring of Kojève’s philosophizing in the tradition of Russian religious philosophy Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-08-01 Annett Jubara
The subject of this paper is Alexandre Kojève’s relationship to Russian Religious Philosophy, which is characterized by a paradoxical contrast between Kojève’s openly critical judgment of it, on the one hand, and the hidden, implicit influence of this philosophical tradition on his own atheistic philosophizing on the other. The hidden influence of Russian Religious Philosophy, Kojève’s engagement with
-
Defining nothingness: Kazimir Malevich and religious renaissance Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-07-05 Tatiana Levina
In the treatise “Suprematism. The World as Objectlessness or Eternal Peace” (1922), Kazimir Malevich positions himself as a “bookless philosopher” who did not consider theories of other philosophers. In fact, the treatise contains a large number of references to philosophers belonging to different traditions. A careful reading shows the extent to which Malevich’s theory is linked to the Russian religious
-
Florovsky’s logical relativism: a philosophical and theological analysis Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-07-05 Harry James Moore
Georges Florovsky’s essay ‘On the Grounding of Logical Relativism’ has attracted attention from various theologians and students of Russian thought but has until now avoided a serious philosophical analysis and critique. The complex but thought-provoking essay presents Florovsky’s so-called logical relativism, a position which he seemed to maintain for the rest of his career. This paper will show that
-
Sergius Bulgakov and his “neo-patristic” lens Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-06-07 Daniel Kisliakov
The conception of the neo-patristic, despite its notional meaning being self-evident, continues to confound scholars in its specific detail. In this regard, a question of interest concerns the relationship between Fr. Sergius Bulgakov and neo-patristics. Conventional wisdom posits that Bulgakov ascribed to the “Russian school” with a philosophically-oriented approach to theology, whose interest in
-
The Name-glorifying projects of Alexei Losev and Pavel Florensky: A question of their historical interrelation Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-05-03 Dmitry Biriukov
This article deals with the question of the interrelation between two papers, both called, in short, “Onomatodoxy”, dedicated to the doctrine of Name-glorification (Imiaslavie, Onomatodoxy), both of which were created in line with the Neo-Patristic movement in the Russian philosophy of the Silver Age. One of these papers is by Alexei Losev and the other by Pavel Florensky. In my opinion, there are
-
What is the truth of the ridiculous man? The question of the ‘difference’ in Dostoevsky’s dream Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-04-06 Andrea Oppo
The critical studies on Dostoevsky’s ‘The Dream of a Ridiculous Man’ have never diverged to a very great extent from the two interpretative lines developed many years ago by Mikhail Bakhtin and Nikolai Berdyaev, which concern, on the one hand, the Menippean satirical structure of this short story and, on the other, its general motif of ‘utopia vs. anti-utopia.’ Although these two views are unquestionably
-
Alexandre Kojève’s photography: some reflections Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-04-04 Dmitry Tokarev
-
Valentin Asmus’s historico-philosophical articles in the journal “Pod znamenem marksizma”: between philosophy and ideology Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-03-28 Elena V. Besschetnova
The article discusses the original critical dialectical approach of the Soviet philosopher Valentin F. Asmus. His publications on the heritage of Western philosophical thought in the journal Pod znamenem marksizma are examples of this approach. In the 1920s and 1930s, Asmus published a number of articles analyzing a variety of the ideas developed by Western European philosophers: “An Advocate for Philosophical
-
Nikolai I. Zhinkin: Form of mythical consciousness Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-03-09 Nikolai I. Zhinkin, Nikolaj Plotnikov
Nikolai Zhinkin’s review of Ernst Cassirer is so far the earliest document of the discussion in Russia about Cassirer’s conception of myth and his theory of symbolic forms. The text is published from Zhinkin’s archive. Zhinkin here notes a reorientation of Neo-Kantianism that reveals its hidden relativism and stands as a symptom of its downfall.
-
Two responses to the “Sophia Affair” and Bulgakov’s theology of authority Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-03-08 Daniel Kisliakov
One of the most contentious events of Russian religious thought of the twentieth century was the “Sophia Affair”, which befell Bulgakov in 1935. This article compares and contrasts two responses by Nikolai Berdyaev and Sergius Bulgakov and what they say about freedom of thought in Russian theology, what that means in a socio-cultural context and the impact that had on the development of Russian theology
-
Stalin with Kant or Hegel? Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-02-23 Jeff Love
Alexandre Kojève declared himself a Stalinist. This declaration has puzzled his own students from the inter-war period and many later commentators. The present article takes Kojève at his word; its imaginative thrust is to cast Kojève’s declaration in the context of a more comprehensive reflection on revolution and the revolutionary project undertaken by Stalinism. Kojève envisages revolution as completing
-
Thinking in circles: Kojève and Russian Hegelianism Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-02-20 Isabel Jacobs
This paper analyzes Russian-French philosopher Alexandre Kojève’s dialogue with proponents of Hegelianism and phenomenology in Soviet Russia of the 1920–30s. Considering works by Dmytro Chyzhevsky, Ivan Ilyin, Gustav Shpet, and Alexandre Koyré, I retrace Hegelian themes in Kojève, focusing on the relation between method and time. I argue that original reflections on method played a key role in both
-
The beginnings of Czechoslovak Buddhism Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-02-09 Jan Lípa, Ladislav Rozenský, Josef Dolista, Petr Ondrušák
The 2500-year-old teachings of the Buddha Dharma penetrated Europe during the nineteenth century. These teachings came to the Lands of the Czech Crown in the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, and subsequently Czechoslovakia, mainly due to the Theosophical Society as Neobuddhism, which had an esoteric character. In 1891, Gustav Meyrink, a world-famous writer of Austrian origin, became the first practitioner
-
Aza A. Takho-Godi’s contribution to the history of ideas and concepts Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-02-02 Alexander L. Dobrokhotov
The investigations of Aza A. Takho-Godi, devoted to the evolution of concepts and terms in European culture, were ahead of their time and, as it turns out today, paved the way for historical semantics, which turned out to be a kind of independent version of the “history of concepts”: a direction of humanitarian thought aimed at identifying cultural, social, and political functions concepts in their
-
Some notes on The Palgrave Handbook of Russian Thought Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2023-01-18 Teresa Obolevitch
These are my comments on The Palgrave Handbook of Russian Thought at the ASEEES convention (Chicago, November 2022).
-
A way out of hell: Dante and the philosophy of personal salvation in post-Soviet Russia Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-12-19 Olga Igorevna Kusenko
This article examines the transformation of Dante’s image in post-Soviet scholarship. The author shows how Russian philologists Vladimir Bibikhin, Olga Sedakova, and Georgii Chistiakov introduced a new image of Dante to post-Soviet readers in fresh translations of his work, scholarly writings, and lecture courses that revealed previously obscured philosophical and theological dimensions of his texts
-
Ota Weinberger’s conception of democracy: reconstructing an unexplored political theory Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-12-12 Marián Sekerák
Ota Weinberger was a Czech-Austrian jurist, whose core academic work on issues of democracy was mostly published in the 1990s. In his writings, he focused primarily on legal philosophy from a positivist perspective. However, there are also significant overlaps with the field of political theory as Weinberger examined the conditions for the functioning of contemporary democracies. In this paper, some
-
The crossing of borders Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-12-06 Algis Mickunas
The article draws a comparison between the Peloponnesian War between ancient Sparta and Athens, on the one hand, and Russia and the West, on the other. Rather than economic and utilitarian ethics, the author proposes that aggression on the part of oppressive as opposed to democratic regimes is driven by the fear of future insignificance. Democracies represent a threat to autocracies not so much by
-
Comments for the book symposium “The Palgrave Handbook of Russian Thought” Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-11-21 Lina Steiner
These are my comments and responses to questions and comments by my colleagues at the Handbook symposium that took place last fall.
-
Failed human: on national guilt and its religious roots Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-10-20 Lina Bulakhova
This commentary considers the idea of collective responsibility in conjunction with the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Drawing on the works of Karl Jaspers and Hannah Arendt, I define a grounding for the political necessity of (self-)blaming the whole Russian nation for the crimes of this war. Researching in more detail the theological compounds of Jaspers’ views, I propose to consider the imposition
-
Roundtable: Q&A discussion Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-10-20 Artemy Magun, Kate Khan, Lina Bulakhova, Anastasia Merzenina, Artem Serebryakov, Oleg Aronson
This is the Q&A portion of the roundtable that focuses on the crucial issues of individual and collective guilt of the intellectual class in the face of war. The participants address the stratification of Russian society, possibilities and obstacles of dissent, and the eschatological tendencies of history by engaging with each other’s claims and ideas and seeking answers to direct questions.
-
Shame as Sensus Communis Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-10-07 Oleg Aronson
Revisiting Jaspers’ critique of the idea of collective guilt, the author proposes to consider the category of shame not as an individual moral experience, but as a sensus communis. Using the Kantian interpretation of the sensus communis to understand the collective character of shame allows us to draw attention to the fact that modern democracy (in contrast to war-oriented fascism) has lost its own
-
The topophrenic space and the double exile: Norman Manea Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-09-30 Alina Bako
The present study sets out to discuss a literary work as a reflection of topophrenia, a space of anguish, which contains the data of both the abandoned space and of the new home, which are hypostasized in positive or negative emotions that the exiled writer experiences. Focusing on the exile and the space in Norman Manea’s works, this article proves the existence of an original view about this experience
-
Imperialism and nationalism Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-09-30 Paweł Rojek
Is Russia a neoimperial or postimperial state? In this paper, I compare two interpretations proposed by political commentators Marcel Van Herpen and Dmitri Trenin. Van Herpen holds that the Russian empire is literally being rebuilt, whereas Trenin believes that Russia is just ceasing to be an empire. I argue that, contrary to popular belief, the current war against Ukraine cannot be interpreted as
-
A return of barbarism Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-09-28 Artemy Magun
This article discusses the 2022 war from the point of view of its well-documented savagery. It addresses philosophical discussions of barbarism and gives a dialectical explanation of this phenomenon through the gradual polarization between the forces of Enlightenment and the obstinacy of the subject. This clash has a double shape: formality versus materiality and morality versus happiness.
-
Impromptu reflections on The Palgrave Handbook of Russian Thought, edited by Marina F. Bykova, Michael N. Forster, Lina Steiner Studies in East European Thought (IF 0.25) Pub Date : 2022-09-26 Caryl Emerson
Russian thought has long been a hybrid of native and imported forms—or more accurately, native values were first conceptualized and systematized according to Western European categories. This essay considers select entries in the Handbook (primarily those discussing Hegel, Solovyov, Tolstoy, and twentieth-century prose writers) not from the perspective of “pure” or abstract philosophy, arguably a Western