DOCSLIB.ORG

Russian Cultural Worldview and Modernization of Russia

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Russian Cultural Worldview and Modernization of Russia Xu Fenglin. Russian Cultural Worldview and Modernization of Russia RUSSIAN CULTURAL WORLDVIEW AND MODERNIZATION OF RUSSIA* Xu Fenglin Xu Fenglin – Doctor of Science (Philosophy), Professor of the Department of Philosophy, Institute for Foreign Philosophy at Peking University. E-mail: [email protected] Being the cornerstone of Russian traditional culture, Russian cultural worldview – Russian cultural mindset, as it were – is characterized by inherent harmony, wholeness, collectivism, ideal- ism, and intrinsic religiosity; all these features oppose the evolvement of the modernization pro- cess in Russia. When pondering the process of Russia’s modernization, Russian philosophy, grounded in a typically Russian cultural worldview and unique world perception, does not deem modernization the best social scenario and an ideal to be sought; Russian philosophy abounds in the highest spiritual and humanitarian concerns. Key words: functions of Russian philosophy, Russian cultural worldview, modernization of Russia. DOI: 10.31079/1992-2868-2018-15-2-169-174 Russian* philosophers label the national psycholog- 1. The Russian Mindset Hinders the Moderni- ical traits inherent in Russian people as “the Russian zation of Russia mindset” (Semyon Frank), “the Russian soul” (Nikolai The Russian mindset, or worldview, is character- Berdyaev), and “the Russian national character” (Niko- ized by a number of features outlined and described by lay Lossky), among others. Russian spirituality and cul- renowned philosophers, among them Nikolay Lossky, ture in modern times are subjected to clashes with a very Semyon Frank, Nikolai Berdyaev, and Vassiliy Zen- specific social reality of today – modernization; this col- kovsky. From the multiple definitive markers, one may lision causes the contradiction between Russian spiritual deduce and distinguish four major indicators: heritage and culture and the prevalent social reality. If 1.1. The Worldview and Mindset of Man we approach this issue from the perspective of the social The traditional Russian mindset resists and with- reality, it would appear that modernization in Russia – stands abstract rational thinking; of great value is life unlike that in the West – has the following characteris- experience which reflects the essence of the very being tics: adoption and borrowing, “zigzagging”, retardation, and imparts it meaning and inner sense. What the Rus- and cultural gap. If we perceive modernization from the sian mindset seeks is not truth in the Western gnoseo- perspective of spirituality and culture, we can’t ignore logical sense – that is to say, veracity which implies the the following question: what is the role that the Russian correspondence, the accord of the idea and the object; national tradition plays in the process of Russia’s mod- but the truth viewed as the unity of the Veritas and jus- ernization? Many scholars have pondered the aspects tice, fairness. This truth reveals itself not only as the related to the way the Russian national cultural tradition comprehension of the world and life but as the spiritual opposes the modernization process, but it appears the essence of existence. Truth, goodness, and beauty qua elucidation of the matter at hand is not profound enough. ultimate values in life are not separated and isolated We believe that the aforementioned question – that of categories but form a holistic unity. The Russian men- the modernization in Russia and the role the national tality and perception of life manifest themselves as the cultural legacy plays in it – is to be viewed from two striving for the life’s ideal – total fusion of the individ- angles. If one considers the given issue in the context of ual and the society. the development of Russia’s society as an objective his- The unity of mentality and worldview of an indi- torical process, then, it would seem that certain elements vidual cannot be realized in our contemporary society, of the Russian national tradition do hinder the moderni- because these two categories do not correlate with an zation process in Russia; if we, however, view the pro- individual consciousness. Our contemporary society is gress of Russian culture and society with a clear under- characterized by differentiation as a principle: the dif- standing that human life is the absolute value, then the ferentiation of social roles, variation of skills and moral reevaluation of the modernization concept by Russian qualities, distinction between social and private lives. philosophers is a rational and worthy endeavor which is In the modern world, every person expresses oneself as invaluable for philosophy, being far from indicative of a free, autonomous subject; that corresponds to the regress and retardation. requirements of modern market economy and demo- cratic policy. Individual consciousness and civil con- sciousness are formed, developed and perfected in the * Translated by E.Y. Malneva, Candidate of Science (Philology). course of progress of the Western society. The Eastern 169 «The Humanities аnd Social Studies in the Far East». Vol. XV. Issue 2, 2018 Orthodox conception of a person differs from that typi- ogists and religious thinkers, among those Leo Tolstoy, cal of the Western world, and that distinction, quite Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Nikolai Gogol, Mikhail Lermon- possibly, originates from the teachings of St. Augus- tov, Fyodor Tyutchev, and Nikolai Leskov. tine. According to the latter, Man after committing the How did the Russian national culture manage to original sin became a subject, an individual who corre- preserve its religious vector in the nineteenth century lated his actions with God, faith, and reason. Later, the and at the beginning of the twentieth century – despite Western world was affected by the Renaissance, the its prolonged exposure to Western secular culture? The Reformation and the Enlightenment; individual aware- answer to this lies in the immanent legacy of Eastern ness and civil consciousness grew more complex in the Orthodoxy which has become an intrinsic inextricable process of interaction of faith and reason, the church feature and a constituent part of the universal system of and the state, an individual and the society. moral values. Religion has transcended the boundaries But the aforementioned process is not typical of of the Church and theology and acquired a universal Russia which inherited the Orthodox faith from Byzan- significance for the formation of spiritual and cultural tium. Within the Russian Orthodox tradition, a person values. Russian religious philosopher Vladimir Solo- is not viewed as an autonomous subject; his essence is vyov posits that religion – to put it generally and in the dissolved in God. Man, as Orthodoxy posits, is an im- most abstract terms – is communion, a connection be- perfect being who opens up to God and aspires to God, tween Man, the world and the absolute beginning and being on the constant path – searching for a way from nexus of all existence. (Соловьев 1988, 5) imperfection to perfection and righteousness. Two rad- The religious gradient of the Russian mindset is ical and profound notions were fashioned in the Rus- closely entwined with the philosophy of life. The Rus- sian national worldview owing to this religious prem- sian cultural worldview decrees that human life is ise: 1) belief in the inherent connection between Man deemed meaningless – as is social secular culture – if it and the Absolute Being; 2) the absence of faith in the is devoid of religious values. The Russian cultural autonomy of human self-awareness, ideas, reason, and worldview does not behold any meaning in human life mind. Nikolay Lossky claimed that the Russians lacked and social secular culture if they are both lacking reli- empirical nature which was ingrained in the European gious values. It is this particularly sharp religious slant mentality. that enables Russian people to ponder such sempiternal The totality of the cultural worldview and mindset existential questions as “What is human?”; “What is the of a Russian person is inextricably linked with absolut- meaning of life?”; “How are humans and the Higher ism and religiosity. Being (Deity) connected?” Russian philosophers pay a 1.2. Absolutism and Religiosity significant amount of attention to such issues as the tran- In modern era, Western culture has started impos- scendental nature of philosophy and the problem of ab- ing significant influence on Russian culture; notwith- solutism. Nikolai Berdyaev claims that philosophers standing, Russian spiritual culture and philosophy sometimes tend to stoop to rude empiricism and materi- managed to preserve their religious nature. In the times alism, but a true philosopher aspires to the otherworldly, of Peter the Great, Russia proverbially opened – or the transcendent – beyond the boundaries of this world; better yet, smashed open – the window into the Euro- they are never satisfied with what lies within imminent pean world but, arguably, the major elements borrowed reach. Philosophy has always been an escape, a getaway from the Western milieu back then pertained primarily from the senseless, empirical world, assaulting and abus- to the material culture; spirituality used to be ignored ing us in every possible way, into the realm of meaning, for the most part, this inevitably resulted in the forcible of the ethereal, the otherworldly. (Бердяев 1994, 232) Europeanization of the Russian way of life. During the Lev Shestov, in his turn, believes that philosophy sees as period of Catherine the Great’s rule,
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Russian Foreign Policy and National Identity
    University of New Orleans ScholarWorks@UNO Senior Honors Theses Undergraduate Showcase 12-2017 Russian Foreign Policy and National Identity Monica Hanson-Green University of New Orleans Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uno.edu/honors_theses Part of the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Hanson-Green, Monica, "Russian Foreign Policy and National Identity" (2017). Senior Honors Theses. 99. https://scholarworks.uno.edu/honors_theses/99 This Honors Thesis-Restricted is protected by copyright and/or related rights. It has been brought to you by ScholarWorks@UNO with permission from the rights-holder(s). You are free to use this Honors Thesis-Restricted in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) directly, unless additional rights are indicated by a Creative Commons license in the record and/or on the work itself. This Honors Thesis-Restricted has been accepted for inclusion in Senior Honors Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UNO. For more information, please contact [email protected]. RUSSIAN FOREIGN POLICY AND NATIONAL IDENTITY An Honors Thesis Presented to the Program of International Studies of the University of New Orleans In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Arts, with University High Honors and Honors in International Studies By Monica Hanson-Green December 2017 Advised by Dr. Michael Huelshoff ii Table of Contents
    [Show full text]
  • Virginia Woolf's Portraits of Russian Writers
    Virginia Woolf’s Portraits of Russian Writers Virginia Woolf’s Portraits of Russian Writers: Creating the Literary Other By Darya Protopopova Virginia Woolf’s Portraits of Russian Writers: Creating the Literary Other By Darya Protopopova This book first published 2019 Cambridge Scholars Publishing Lady Stephenson Library, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2PA, UK British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Copyright © 2019 by Darya Protopopova All rights for this book reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. ISBN (10): 1-5275-2753-0 ISBN (13): 978-1-5275-2753-9 TABLE OF CONTENTS Note on the Text ........................................................................................ vi Preface ...................................................................................................... vii Introduction ................................................................................................ 1 Russia and the British Search for the Cultural ‘Other’ Chapter One .............................................................................................. 32 Woolf’s Real and Fictional Russians Chapter Two ............................................................................................. 58 Woolf and Dostoevsky: Verbalising the Soul Chapter Three ........................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • A Possible Filiation Between A. Khomiakov and Lev Karsavin Françoise Lesourd
    A possible filiation between A. Khomiakov and Lev Karsavin Françoise Lesourd To cite this version: Françoise Lesourd. A possible filiation between A. Khomiakov and Lev Karsavin. Alexei Khomiakov : We are sobornost’ integral life in slavophile thought as an answer to modern fragmentation. The church, empire and the modern state, In press. hal-01792373 HAL Id: hal-01792373 https://hal-univ-lyon3.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01792373 Submitted on 15 May 2018 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. 1 A Possible Filiation Between Alexei Khomiakov and Lev Karsavin Françoise Lesourd Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3 Khomiakov exerted a certain influence on Lev Karsavin, one of the leading Russian philosophers of religion of the twentieth century. Lev Karsavin was born in Saint Petersburg in 1882. His family belonged not to the intelligentsia, but to the artistic milieu: his father was principal dancer at the Mariinsky Theatre, the Saint Petersburg opera house, and his sister Tamara Karsavina became a famous ballerina and went on to dance with Nijinsky 1 . Karsavin himself studied at the Faculty of History and Philology under the distinguished professor Ivan Mikhailovitch Grevs, and was to become one of the most outstanding historians of the Saint Petersburg school, and a specialist on medieval Western spirituality.
    [Show full text]
  • An Old Believer ―Holy Moscow‖ in Imperial Russia: Community and Identity in the History of the Rogozhskoe Cemetery Old Believers, 1771 - 1917
    An Old Believer ―Holy Moscow‖ in Imperial Russia: Community and Identity in the History of the Rogozhskoe Cemetery Old Believers, 1771 - 1917 Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Doctoral Degree of Philosophy in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Peter Thomas De Simone, B.A., M.A Graduate Program in History The Ohio State University 2012 Dissertation Committee: Nicholas Breyfogle, Advisor David Hoffmann Robin Judd Predrag Matejic Copyright by Peter T. De Simone 2012 Abstract In the mid-seventeenth century Nikon, Patriarch of Moscow, introduced a number of reforms to bring the Russian Orthodox Church into ritualistic and liturgical conformity with the Greek Orthodox Church. However, Nikon‘s reforms met staunch resistance from a number of clergy, led by figures such as the archpriest Avvakum and Bishop Pavel of Kolomna, as well as large portions of the general Russian population. Nikon‘s critics rejected the reforms on two key principles: that conformity with the Greek Church corrupted Russian Orthodoxy‘s spiritual purity and negated Russia‘s historical and Christian destiny as the Third Rome – the final capital of all Christendom before the End Times. Developed in the early sixteenth century, what became the Third Rome Doctrine proclaimed that Muscovite Russia inherited the political and spiritual legacy of the Roman Empire as passed from Constantinople. In the mind of Nikon‘s critics, the Doctrine proclaimed that Constantinople fell in 1453 due to God‘s displeasure with the Greeks. Therefore, to Nikon‘s critics introducing Greek rituals and liturgical reform was to invite the same heresies that led to the Greeks‘ downfall.
    [Show full text]
  • Curriculum Vitae
    CURRICULUM VITAE Frederic Tremblay Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia. E-mail: [email protected] Personal Page: http://kantiana.academia.edu/FredericTremblay Education • 2018-2019: Senior Research Fellow, Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia. • 2017-2020: Post-doc, University of Sofia “St. Kliment Ohridski,” Sofia, Bulgaria. • 2016-2017: Russian Language & Culture Institute, Saint-Petersburg State University. • 2015: Postdoc, Institut Jean Nicod, Paris. • 2014: PhD Philosophy, State University of New York at Buffalo. • 2006: Master Philosophy, University of Quebec in Montreal. • 2003: Bachelor Philosophy, University of Quebec in Montreal. Research Areas • Metaphysics, Ontology, Epistemology, Philosophy of Science, History of Philosophy, Intellectual History, History of German Philosophy, History of Russian Philosophy, Nicolai Hartmann, Nikolai Lossky, Vladimir Solovyov, Semyon Frank. Teaching Experience • 2013. “Metaphysics,” McMaster University, Ontario, Canada. • 2012. “Introduction to Philosophy,” Niagara University, Niagara, NY, USA. • 2011. “Introduction to Philosophy,” Niagara University, Niagara, NY, USA. • 2011. “Logic,” Medaille College, Buffalo, NY, USA. • 2010. “Introduction to Philosophy,” Niagara University, Niagara, NY, USA. 1 • 2010. “Critical Thinking,” University at Buffalo, NY, USA. • 2009. “Critical Thinking,” University at Buffalo, NY, USA. • 2008. “Knowledge and Reality,” University at Buffalo, NY, USA. Main Publications Books • Frederic Tremblay, Roberto Poli, Carlo
    [Show full text]
  • Peter Chaadaev: Between the Love of Fatherland and the Love of Truth
    PETER CHAADAEV: BETWEEN THE LOVE OF FATHERLAND AND THE LOVE OF TRUTH BOOK OF ABSTRACTS International Conference Krakow Meetings 2016 June 5–8, 2016 Benedictine Abbey in Tyniec, Krakow, Poland ORGANIZERS: Pontifical University of John Paul II in Krakow Instituto de Filosofia Edith Stein in Granada International Center for the Study of the Christian Orient in Granada HONORARY PATRONAGE: Council of European Bishops’ Conferences INVITED SPEAKERS: Andrzej Walicki (Warsaw) Bernard Marchadier (Paris) Fr. Georgy Orekhanov (Moscow) Regula Zwahlen (Fribourg) ACADEMIC BOARD: Teresa Obolevitch (Krakow) Artur Mrówczyński-Van Allen (Granada) Paweł Rojek (Krakow) CONFERENCE SECRETARY: Olga Tabatadze (Granada) Gennadii Aliaiev Poltava Yuri Kondratuk National Technical University, Ukraine THE TRUTH OF PATRIOTISM OR THE PATRIOTISM OF THE TRUTH What does it make the inner tension of the title question? It is obvious—at least for rational thinking—that the truth is a predicate that describes the universal, as the patriotism is the one that describes the individual or group. There is only one truth, but there are many pa- triotisms. Within this coordinate system, we should rather talk about the patriotism of the truth: as the universal bears greater value than individual, so, first, one should be a patriot of the truth, and only thereafter a patriot of a group (the group is not necessarily a people, a nation, or a state). The patriotism of the truth is the true patriotism, as it comprises in itself or replaces itself (or subordinates under itself) the patriotism of a group as it is com- monly understood. Thus, we can read and interpret the famous words of Peter Chaadaev that the love of the truth is much more beautiful than the love of the Fatherland.
    [Show full text]
  • The Growing Influence of the Russian Orthodox Church in Shaping Russia’S Policies Abroad
    02 BLITT.DOC (DO NOT DELETE) 11/28/2011 10:25 PM RUSSIA’S “ORTHODOX” FOREIGN POLICY: THE GROWING INFLUENCE OF THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH IN SHAPING RUSSIA’S POLICIES ABROAD PROF. ROBERT C. BLITT* TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Introduction ................................................................................364 2. The Russian Orthodox Church’s Foreign Policy Mandate ......................................................................................365 3. Russian Foreign Policy and Disregard for the Constitutional Obligations of Secularism, Separation, and Nondiscrimination .............................................................367 3.1. The Ideological Centrality of Orthodoxy in Russian Foreign Policy as Expressed through Euphemism ...................... 368 3.1.1. The Role of “Spirituality" in Russia’s National Security Strategy .................................................................. 368 3.1.2. A Note on Culture as a Synonym for Orthodoxy ......374 3.1.3. “Spiritual Security” & “Spiritual Revival” ..............377 3.2. Putting Rhetoric into Practice: The Ascendancy of “Spirituality” in Russia’s Foreign Policy ....................................380 3.2.1. Russian Orthodox Church-Ministry of Foreign Affairs Working Group .........................................................380 3.2.2. Russkiy Mir Foundation: A Chimera State-Church Foreign Policy Tool ................................................................383 3.2.3. Support for Days of Spiritual Culture .....................390 3.2.4. Facilitating an Exclusive
    [Show full text]
  • Going Regional the Russian Way: the Eurasian Economic Union Between Instrumentalism and Global Social Appropriateness
    GR:EEN Working Paper Author: Diana Shendrikova, GR:EEN Visiting Researcher at ISPI – Italian Institute for international Political Studies Going regional the Russian way: The Eurasian Economic Union between instrumentalism and global social appropriateness Introduction In his A Russian idea (1946), the philosopher Alexander Berdyaev divided Russia’s history in five major epochs: “There is Kiev Russia, Russia during the Tatar invasion, Moscow Russia, Russia of Peter the Great, Soviet Russia. It is possible that there will be some other new Russia. Russia’s historical development has been catastrophic”1. Expanding Berdyaev’s periodization, the current stage of Russia’s history might be defined ‘Eurasian Russia’, at least to the extent that the country’s current foreign policy seems to be actually underpinned – if not utterly driven – by the willingness to embrace an epochal trend orienting its development. This sort of ‘manifest destiny’ hinges on the East/West divide that has constantly characterized the country’s identity – as well as the political agenda of its leaders, These powerful opposing pulls have often resulting in an ambition for a distinct ‘Russian way’, more or less consistently combined with the Eurasian perspective, bestowing on Russia the role of bridging between the Western European and Eastern cultures.2 1 Николай А. Бердяев, Русская идея. О России и русской философской культуре: философы русского послеоктябрьского зарубежья Nikolay A. Berdyaev, The Russian Idea: On Russia, Russian philosophical culture: philosophers of Russian post-October immigration, Moscow, 1990, Chapter I 2 See more: Marlèn Laruelle, L’ideologie eurasiste russe, ou comment penser l’empire, Paris, L'Harmattan, 1999;, Всеволод Н.
    [Show full text]
  • The Church-State Symphonia Resounding
    Linköping University | Department of Political Science Master’s thesis, 30 ECTS credits | International and European Relations Spring term 2020 | LIU-IEI-FIL-A--20/03450--SE The Church-State Symphonia Resounding Through Third Rome: The Strive for Transnational Religious Identity and Unity Author: Zoran Zivkovic Supervisor: Mikael Blomdahl Glossary Autocephaly Independent of external patriarchal authority.1 Ecclesiastical Established church institution.2 Ecumenical Representant of a whole body of churches.3 Clergy People ordained to perform pastoral functions in Christian Church.4 Metropolitan The bishop of an ecclesiastical province.5 Patriarch The head of an Eastern Orthodox Church.6 Patriarchate The office of a Patriarch.7 Parish The ecclesiastical unit of area committed to one pastor.8 Schism Formal separation from a Church.9 Symphonia Diarchic rule between a regent and a Patriarch.10 1 Merriam-Webster. Autocephalous 2 Ibid., Ecclesiastical. 3 Ibid., Ecumenical. 4 Ibid., Clergy. 5 Ibid., Metropolitan. 6 Ibid., Patriarch. 7 Ibid., Patriarchate. 8 Ibid., Parish. 9 Ibid., Schism. 10 Knox, Z. (2004) Russian Society and the Orthodox Church: Religion in Russia after Communism, pp.25 Abstract The Soviet Union population was unified under the shared belief of being a part of a common goal for proletarianism, in disregard of religion. These sentiments were prevalent up until the union’s dissolution. Something which created an identity void, reinvigorating the need for spirituality. The idea of belonging to a Church was encouraged, in which Orthodoxy emerged as a solution for the lack of identity and provided a source of piety for the people. Amalgamating the scattered religious community, essentially providing a catalyst for creating an identity based on a cultural belonging to a historical past.
    [Show full text]
  • Movement and Enlightenment in the Russian North
    MOVEMENT AND ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE RUSSIAN NORTH Eva Toulouze Abstract: In the process of integrating the Northern areas into the Russian world, both missionaries and Soviet activists have endeavoured to change the local population’s minds and worldview, in order to get it in compliance with the new world they were bringing. But the indigenous population was nomadic. This presented a considerable challenge to the enlighteners. How did they cope with it? Did they attempt to become “temporarily” nomads themselves or did they try to compel the people to change also their way of life? Were there differences in strategies between the Christian missionaries of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries and the Soviet “cultural construction” activists? These are the questions this article attempts to find an answer to. Key words: cultural bases, education, enlightment, nomadic school, nomad- ism, Orthodox missionaries, sedentarisation, soviet activists, Western Siberia INTRODUCTION In the history of their contacts with aliens, the natives of the Russian North have often met people who wanted something from them (furs, fish) and oth- ers who wanted to change something in their lives. Among the latter, some were bearers of what they considered a universal truth – the Christian gospel and the promise of eternal life in the case of the Orthodox (and lately Protes- tant) missionaries, the Marxist dogma and the promise of earthly communism in the case of the “red” missionaries. As far as nomads – and “primitive peo- ples” in general – are concerned, this issue was completed by a parallel at- tempt – either to enlighten or to change them altogether both in their worldview and in their way of life.
    [Show full text]
  • “Russian World”? Geopolitical Attitudes in Southeastern Ukraine, Crimea, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria
    EURASIAN GEOGRAPHY AND ECONOMICS, 2016 VOL. 57, NO. 6, 745–778 http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15387216.2017.1295275 Who identifies with the “Russian World”? Geopolitical attitudes in southeastern Ukraine, Crimea, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria John O’Loughlina, Gerard Toalb and Vladimir Kolosovc aInstitute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA; bSchool of Public & International Affairs, Virginia Tech, Alexandria, VA, USA; cInstitute of Geography, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY The concept of the Russian world (Russkii mir) re-entered Received 5 February 2017 geopolitical discourse after the end of the Soviet Union. Accepted 10 February 2017 Though it has long historical roots, the practical definition KEYWORDS and geopolitical framing of the term has been debated and Russkii mir; de facto states; refined in Russian political and cultural circles during the Ukraine; Crimea; geopolitics; years of the Putin presidency. Having both linguistic-cultural biopolitics and geopolitical meanings, the concept of the Russian world remains controversial, and outside Russia it is often associated with Russian foreign policy actions. Examination of official texts from Vladimir Putin and articles from three Russian newspapers indicate complicated and multifaceted views of the significance and usage of the Russkii mir concept. Surveys in December 2014 in five sites on the fringes of Russia – in southeastern Ukraine, Crimea, and three Russian-supported de facto states (Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria) – show significant differences between the Ukrainian sample points and the other locations about whether respondents believe that they live in the Russian world. In Ukraine, nationality (Russian vs.
    [Show full text]
  • Russian Philosophy” Exist? the Boundaries and Nature of a Question
    Оппо А. Существует ли «русская философия»? Границы и природа вопроса 47 Oppo A. Does a “russian philosophy” exist? The boundaries and nature of a question ФИЛОСОФИЯ И МЕТОДОЛОГИЯ ПОЗНАНИЯ PHILOSOPHY AND METHODOLOGY OF COGNITION УДК 1(47) ББК 83.3(2) Andrea Oppo Faculty of Theology of Sardinia (PFTS), Advanced PhD (Philosophy), Professor of Theoretical Philos- ophy, Italy, Cagliari, e-mail: [email protected] Does a “russian philosophy” exist? The boundaries and nature of a question Abstract. The issue of the existence of a peculiarly “Russian” philosophy has long been the object of many debates, which soon led to very different and often opposite conclusions. The question is always the same: Is there an original contribution that Russian authors made to philosophy, in the same way as with literature, arts, and sciences? What happened to Greek/Western philosophy when cultivated in “Russian soil”? In order to answer these questions, it is necessary to first carry out a brief examination of the never-obvious issue of “what being a philosopher means”, i.e. of what generally distinguishes an intellectual who claims to be a “philosopher” from other kinds of intellectuals or scholars. After this short but necessary premise, this article will try to sum up some of the classic and modern definitions of Russian philosophy (from Chaadaev to Evlampiev) and conclude by proposing a personal idea about an overarching frame of Russian philosophical thought. In my opinion, the latter mostly originates from a peculiar reception in Russia of Platonism, Idealism and Marxism that ultimately transformed those views, especially during the Silver Age, into a sort of “integral gnoseology”, which connects “logos” and “life” in a specifically dialectical way that can be described, pour cause, as “Russian”.
    [Show full text]