Russian Intelligentsia in Search of an Identity considers the problem of the Russian intelligentsiaâs self-identification in its historic-philosophical and historic-cultural aspects. The monograph traces the rise of the intelligentsia, from the 18th century to the present day, problematizing its central ideas and themes. In this historical context, it proceeds to investigate the distinctive intellectual, spiritual and biographical opposition of Dostoevsky and Tolstoy in relation to the character and fate of the Russian intelligentsia, with its patterns of thought, ideology, fundamental values and behavioral models. Special attention is given to the binary patterns of the intelligentsiaâs consciousness, as opposed to dialogical and holistic modes of apprehension.
Svetlana Klimova, D.Sc., is Professor of Russian Studies at National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow. She has published more than 200 articles and 4 monographs about the history of Russian philosophy and culture, including A Phenomenology of Holiness and Passion in Russian Philosophy of Culture (2004).
ââAbstract
ââAcknowledgmentsx
ââNotes
ââIntroduction
â1 The Rise of the Russian Intelligentsia
ââ1.1 The Historic Origins of Binary Consciousness
ââ1.2 The Eighteenth Century and the Birth of Humanism
ââ1.3 Pyotr Chaadayev and the Nineteenth Century: from Dialogues with Power to Public Discussion and Binary Consciousness
ââ1.4 The Third Path of Russian Intellectualism
ââ1.5 Russian Intelligentsia: history and Fate
ââ1.6 The âHolinessâ of the Russian Intelligent
â2 Fyodor Dostoevskyâs Ideology and Mythmaking
ââ2.1 Dostoevskyâs Authorial Myth
ââ2.2 Binary Code in Dostoevskyâs Worldview
ââ2.3 The National Question in the Mirrors of Religion and Existential Philosophy
â3 The Rise of the Philosophy of Life:Between Nikolay Strakhov and Lev Tolstoy
ââ3.1 Nikolay Strakhovâs Mediation between Dostoevsky and Tolstoy
ââ3.2 The Philosophical Dialogue of Tolstoy and Strakhov
ââ3.3 Tolstoy the Philosopher
â4 Tolstoyâs Social-Religious Teaching: Presentiments of the Twentieth Century
ââ4.1 Tolstoy through the Prism of the Intelligentsia
ââ4.2 Evil in Politics and Philosophy: âWho Is To Blame?â
ââ4.3 The Amelioration of Evil: âWhat Are We To Do?â
ââ4.4 Twentieth-Century Political Philosophy: Tolstoy, Weber, Arendt
ââ4.5 The National Question in the Mirror of Tolstoyâs Art
ââPostscript
For readers interested in the history of Russian culture and philosophy of the 19th-20th centuries, in particular the history of the intellectual traditions of the Russian Intelligentsia.