Alexander Pushkin deals with crucial turning-points in the rise of Russia in Boris Godunov and The Bronze Horseman . In the former he is influenced not only by Shakespearian drama, but also by N. M. Karamzin’s History of the Russian State . Without simply recreating Russia’s past, he challenges the ideas of the Enlightenment and the Romantic Movement, identifying rational and irrational forces at work and linking the present with the past through the use of historicisms. In The Bronze Horseman (...) he combines two different interpretations of the founding of St Petersburg in 1703, launching a dialogue with the eighteenth-century odic tradition from which he liberates modern Russian literature. As in Boris Godunov, a measured blend of church slavonicisms and colloquialisms provides a parallel linguistic contrast, mirroring socio-political and moral themes. Dynamic conflict between the rational and the irrational is considered inherent in historical events and the forces of nature. In The Bronze Horseman it is symbolized by a clash between the hard elements of St Petersburg and the soft ones of the River Neva. The guilt-ridden Boris Godunov and the visionary Peter the Great, a man of Napoleonic volition, are unable to impose reason on a world of disorder without unleashing the unpredictable, irrational, elemental forces which they seek to quell. In the ensuing struggle for survival either one loses one’s way and goes mad, like Evgeny in The Bronze Horseman, or one conquers, like the paranoid Boris Godunov, the imaginative Peter the Great, and, indeed, the resourceful Pushkin himself. (shrink)

The present paper is a continuation of the previous appearances by the author addressing the phenomenon of the cultural-symbolic world pictures as typologically founded in the “epoch-making” ontologies and culturally expressed versions of history. In their construction, philosophy is responsible for the love of wisdom, history – for the given in making the consciousness of being, culture – for the personal expression of human history. This article re-constructs the world picture of the Latin Christian Medieval Ages, adequate to the author’s (...) original theoretical constructs, with an emphasis on its ontological dimension proper. Section 1 deals with the European practice of interpreting the mentioned period as a distinct cultural-historical type, from Renaissance till the 20th century’s Human World. Concurrently, at the theoretical level, the paper addresses the very historical form of being is defined; philosophical tools to tell theory and history apart are offered; transformations of fact in the past are shown; distinguishing features of the knowledge relation. Section 2 deals with the basic components of cultural myth on the symbolic Divine World, and their representation in the philosophical practice of that period. Primarily, the very pathway of such philosophical “portraying” is sketched out: 1) the “epoch-making” interpretations of the absolute foundations of life of resp. ontologies → 2) ideals and values as defined by the latter, being components of an “epoch-making” ontological structure → 3) characteristic recording of the obtained “picture” in cultural reflections → 4) the “epoch-making” guides into knowledge and texts – realizers for the intent to irradiate knowledge. The paper also offers three symbolic worlds of the Latin Medieval Ages. Finally, under the distinctive Medieval “double-focus” view mode, and based on analysis of key texts of the period, seven twofold ontologically oriented characteristic features are offered as fundamental components of the then picture of the world. Section 3 suggests the final definition of the Latin Medieval Ages as a distinct cultural-historical type of life. Manuscript received 16.02.2020. (shrink)

Over the rich and manifold classic culture billows the Homeric epics, which comprises two poems - The Iliad and The Odyssey. These two poems had had great influence upon the classic worldview, including the ancient Greek and Roman mythology, drama and philosophy. It was the Homeric epics, wherein the basic ideas of ancient Greek and Roman worldview were most fully developed; such great Greek and Roman thinkers, as Plato and Aristotle, Sophocles and Euripides, Seneca and Lucian found inspiration in The (...) Iliad and The Odyssey, as well as many others. Despite its great impact upon Ancient culture, the epic poems of Homer are relatively insufficiently studied in the Ukrainian humanities, including political science. Therefore, the necessity of analysis of interaction between politics and art namely in the Homeric epics is determined by two reasons. Firstly, by the principal relevance of The Iliad and The Odyssey for the whole classic culture, which enables the definition of the most fundamental aspects of interaction of these two spheres of human existence. Secondly, by the insufficient, as of our opinion, level of studying the Homeric epics in Ukrainian political science. The goal of this article is to analyse the interpretation of politics and art in the Homeric epics separately and, afterwards, to establish key principles of their dialogic interaction, concluding on this basis about the place and complex nature of interplay between these concepts in the framework of Homeric cosmos and, indirectly, the Ancient worldview in general. The results of analysis have allowed to conclude about the key principles of interaction between politics and art in the poems of Homer The Iliad and The Odyssey. The basic features of politics and aesthetics in the Homeric epics along with the moments of their dialogic interplay have been defined. On the example of The Iliad and The Odyssey the study found the phenomenon of aestheticization of politics in the ancient worldview. Several basic features of the dialogic interaction of politics and art have been pointed out, including the conclusion that in the Homeric cosmos politics is limited, while the beauty - absolute and unlimited; the conclusion that art, i.e. beaty, created by man, matches with the Logos, or rational principle of the universe, that also reings over politics, and the conclusion that politics doesn’t dominate over art, as it was in civilization of the Ancient East, such as Egypt and Mesopotamia, but has the task to create conditions for the prosperity of art. On these grounds the place and specificity of the complex nature of interaction between politics and art in the Homeric epics have been defined. (shrink)

Modern universities often become a subject of discussion in the public sphere, during which the relevance of university programs, the financing of science and higher education, and a number of other issues are discussed. These discussions again and again prompt political theorists to reflect on the “idea of a university”. These ideas are associated with values, expectations and beliefs, and are most often expressed in the form of normative representations based either on pragmatism that define the university as a functional (...) element of the state system, or on utilitarianism that required from the university to satisfy the economic demands of society, or on idealism that forces position the university as an “ivory tower”. The presented positions somewhat exaggerate the value of some of the university’s abilities to the detriment of others and distort not only the optics of research, but also the social beliefs that influences the development of state systems and universities. Based on the institutional approach, the authors of this article propose a theoretical position that allows to grasp the current pragmatics of the university community, the market and the state regarding the development of universities and their contribution to the organization of the societal order. According to this position, the university should be considered as an intermediary institution that has public subjectivity; acts as an organizational form of the university community and agent of societal relations; carries out a communicative exchange with the external environment ; creates conditions for the interaction of various agents of societal relations, including on their own space via a formalized rational public discussion; finally, it produces knowledge that influences the organization of the societal order. All of this taken together allows us to consider the university a mediator. This position of the university allows it to successfully fulfill its mediating role, both within the university corporation and outside it, balance between different social expectations and remain in one of the most stable and adaptive organizational forms that constitute the societal order. (shrink)

This paper advances the findings of Alexander Dolinin and Svetlana Evdokhimova relating to A. S. Pushkin’s view of history by advocating the significance of a combination of irrational with rational elements in charting history. In both Boris Godunov and The Bronze Horseman, Pushkin provides visions of history in which the forces of chance and certainty are key factors in determining the course of Russia’s rise to great power status. Influenced by Shakespearian tragedy and by N. M. Karamzin’s History of the (...) Russian State, in Boris Godunov he develops a concept of history as a dynamic, non-linear process, without a simple repetition of events. Using historicisms to link the past with the present, he recognizes the importance of narrative and the chronicler, on the one hand, and chance occurrences and historical coincidence, on the other. In The Bronze Horseman dialogue with the eighteenth-century odic tradition contributes to dual interpretations of the 1703 founding of St Petersburg. Socio-political and moral themes are reflected in the linguistic contrast of church slavonicisms with colloquial terminology. Arising from the clash between the determinedly hard elements of St Petersburg and the more anarchic, soft ones of the River Neva, the Bronze Horseman may also be perceived as, in part, a natural emblem as it bears traits of the tree of life, bringing to mind the myth of Perun, the Slavic storm-god. For Pushkin, neither the guilt-ridden Boris Godunov, nor the visionary Peter the Great, a figure of Napoleonic volition, is able to impose the certainty of reason on chance occurrences without releasing a natural backlash arising from Russia’s mythical past and the haphazard pattern inherent in historical unpredictability. (shrink)

However, strange though it may seem, personal celebrity (as well as fame, popularity etc.) is hardly included in the list of those resources. This happens despite the increasing role of this phenome-non in modern life and the fact that the aspiration for it affects value aims of a growing number of people. What is more, it begins to influence the changes of social relations and stratification. The subject of the present article is the investigation of the influence of the personal (...) celebrity factor on the social life of modern society, the analysis of characteristics of celebrities as a special stratum, and reasons for the rapid increase in the importance of social role of personal celebrity in the last century. (shrink)

In the article of Bystrytska E. «Eastern policy of the Vatican»: methodological and practical aspects of research», the study examines the extent to problems in the works of ukrainian and foreign scientists, as well as an overview of the source base served.

This article aims to give an overview of literary instruction in schools of the russification era at the beginning of the 20th century in Estonia; this was likewise the curriculum of literary study offered to the generation of educated youth which included the Young Estonians. Based on official documents, archival materials, and memoirs, and through analyses of anthologies, literary histories, and teaching methods in use at the time, we attempt to reconstruct the outlines of literary reading and requirements for students (...) in various types of schools. When, as a result of school reform, Russian became the language of instruction; lessons in Russian became central in the curriculum, alongside the word of God; selections from Russian literature were read in the original language. In the lower grades, teaching was by the so-called ”natural method”, intended to guarantee swift achievement of fluency in ”living Russian language”; this was later replaced by systematic textual analysis, which distinguished between belles lettres and other types of texts. However, the study of literature was always subordinated to the goals of language instruction. In institutions of secondary education, study of Russian literature was separate from language instruction. Indeed, Russian literature was the only literature systematically studied in high schools (though one must keep in mind that not all schools completely followed the official program.) Private schools were especially noticeable for their greater freedom, though all of them had to take general curriculum directives into account. Reading of literary texts connected with other languages thus had to remain almost purely illustrative. In view of the above, in the upper grades of elementary school and high school, students obtained a thorough introduction to the Russian classics. According to the official school curriculum, Russian literary history ended with Nikolai Gogol. Attempts were made to ignore more modern authors altogether (to the point of banning them – this applied especially to the works of Fjodor Dostojevski). However, a good command of Russian made it possible to read those works not approved by the school, and to keep abreast of more recent Russian literature. Young Estonians took conspicuous interest in turn-of-the-century Russian literary life. Over time the split between ”anthologized” and real Russian literature continued to deepen, as did the conflict between the works and their official interpretations in schoolbooks. This tendency coincided with processes of renewal in Estonian literature. In the interim, knowledge of classical Russian literature acquired in school remained at the level of passive coexistence in the culture, a kind of backdrop to newer undertakings. Thus it is interesting to note that articles on Aleksandr Pushkin published in the 1920s Estonian press were addressed to the reader assumed to be knowledgeable both about his works and his biography. Reminiscences of school in the memoirs of several Estonian authors serve as evidence that learning about Russian literature, particularly poetry, was perhaps their only bright memory of school in the russification era. (shrink)

The main objective of this study is to continue an open dialogue between representatives of the nuclear industry and the interested public concerned about the ethics of decision-making in nuclear energy. The authors consider these problems from the perspective of integral philosophy differentiating levels of consciousness. The study consists of two parts. The first one aimed to analyse ethical platforms of radiological protection and the principles of biomedical ethics using the level approach [6]. The summary table of ethical correlates of (...) radiation safety and principles of bioethics is presented. The second part described in this paperis contains a system analysis of the public acceptability of radiation risks depending on the ethical platforms of both decision makers and those for whom decisions are made. (shrink)

У статті подається короткий огляд прагматичного емпіризму Джеймса, емпіризму Дьюї, неопрагматистських ідей Рорті, огляд метамоделей Крейга щодо теорії комунікації. На основі даного огляду авторка обґрунтовує необхідність радикалізації прагматизму та аналізує його вплив на комунікаційні дослідження. Досліджується теорія комунікації Роберта Крейга, яку він розглядає як практичну дисципліну. Доводиться, що всі теорії комунікації є взаєморелевантними, якщо їх адресують у практичний життєвий світ, в якому «комунікація» вже є багатозначним терміном. Кожна традиція теорії комунікації походить з риторичних посилань на певні загальноприйняті уявлення про комунікації, (...) оскаржуючи інші переконання. Взаємодоповнення та напруженість традицій породжують теоретичний метадискурс, який перетинається з існуючим практичним метадискурсом у суспільстві та потенційно інформує про нього. За попередньою схемою комунікативного поля риторична, семіотична, феноменологічна, кібернетична, соціально-психологічна, соціокультурна і критична традиції теорії комунікації вирізняються властивими способами визначення комунікації та проблем спілкування, метадискурсивними словниками та метадискурсивними загальними поняттями. Запропоновано порівняльну аргументацію між традиціями, розглянуто результати для теоретичної роботи та дисциплінарної практики в цій галузі. (shrink)

The article deals with the anthropological views of M. Olesnytskyі, a professor at the Kyiv Theological Academy, whose creative work has not yet been properly studied. It reveals the connection of his anthropological ideas with moral theology and ethical doctrine, which he had taught for a long time in the KTA. Anthropological implications of the moral formation of a human person are also paid attention to, in particular, the dependence of the moral character on anthropological factors. In this context, the (...) writing considers Olesnytskyі’s views on the peculiarities of a person’s body-build. The Kyiv scholar focused on the principles of human corporeality based on natural conditions. In particular, Olesnytskyі stressed that it was the earth’s conditions that formed the bodily nature of man. The article also explores those religious ideas that influenced the anthropological views of the Kyiv scholar, which is quite understandable in view of his Christian outlook. Olenytskyі demonstrates the possibility of effective application of contemporary philosophical studies to the theological and anthropological analysis of man as an individual. In this sense, the conceptual connections of the anthropological views of the Kyiv scholar with the ones of the influential contemporary European philosophers and anthropologists, such as А. Schopenhauer, R. H. Lotze, F. Schleiermacher, E. von Hartmann, and others, become clearly evident. The article emphasizes the significance of the concept of the unconscious for the moral anthropological doctrine of Olesnytskyі; it also argues for the connection of this concept to the leading European doctrines of the unconscious, which were elaborated in philosophy and psychology in the second half of the 19 th century. (shrink)

The article is devoted to study of the modes of inheritance of cultural symbols. In particular, it is a research of perception in Christianity of preceding cultures’ archetypes. The study provides the analysis of semantic links between the symbols of the World Tree, the Vivifying Cross and the meaning of the Blessed Virgin image. The article shows how the pre-Christian symbols of the World Tree and the cross itself were merged and transformed in Christian theology, liturgy and iconography in the (...) image of Golgotha Cross. The cross acquires the features of a Cosmic Tree, which combines the lower and the upper worlds – the heaven and the earth, life and death. The symbol of the tree is often substituted by the image of a woman appearing in this case as a symbol of life and fertility and evokes the associations with the genealogical tree. Therefore, the connection between the World Tree and the Blessed Virgin is proved to be natural. On the basis of the historical sources the author analyzes the legends and evidences of the revelations and discoveries of the Blessed Mary’s icons on the trees of a certain kinds. The study explicates the symbolic meaning of those trees spread in a global world, in Slavic and Ukrainian cultural traditions. In particular, the research encloses the semantics of the following kinds of trees: fir tree, linden, pear tree, oak, willow, blackthorn. Every kind of those trees has a special symbolic meaning. The novelty of the research is that it for the first time proves the semantic connection of sacred meaning of miracle icons and of the certain kinds of trees. The study defines the limited range of those trees and, on the other hand, the kinds of other trees believed to be vile and thus never appeared in the legends about the discoveries of miracle icons. As a conclusion, the research proves the existence of the autochtonal tradition of correlation of the semantics of miracle icons of Our Lady with the certain kinds of trees in the result of synthesis of the ancient symbolism and Christianity. In every case, the symbolic meanings of trees had archaic origin and connection with the ancient cosmogonical concepts. Depending on the particular semantic nuance emphasized in the World Tree, the priority of a certain kind of tree determined. On the whole, the study demonstrates the importance of the symbols in forming of cultural identity and for understanding of interrelations of cultures at the deep semantic level. (shrink)

The article is centered around the activities of the first political club in the history of the Ottoman realm — the so-called “Young Ottomans”. The evolution in the world outlook of its foremost representatives, namely Ibrahim Şinasi, Namık Kemal, Abdülhamit Ziya and Ali Suavi, is put under scrutiny. Special attention is paid to the societal context for the rise of the “Young Ottoman” movement: competition among courtly cliques, uneven modernization of the bureaucracy, gradual emergence of “proto-national” conscience under the impact (...) of modern ideologies. Questioning the conceptualization of the “Young Ottoman” circle as a consolidated and organized community with a clear-cut program of action, we stress the differences in concrete attitudes and ambitions which account for the absence of a common platform and the individualism of political behavior, typical for the movement’s leaders. An attempt is also made at analyzing the individual careers of the circle’s members against their social background, education, informal links, participation in client-patron networks of the Sublime Porte and personal relationships with the imperial elite of the Tanzimat period and Abdülhamit II’s reign. Modes of interaction are traced between Western and Islamicate elements in “Young Ottoman” concepts of “Motherland”, “freedom”, “nation” and others, which were rapidly imbibed by the political language of the Islamic world in the second half of the 19th century. Special accent is made on the innovative features of the “Young Ottoman” press in the context of the history of Middle Eastern media. Specific points of their intellectual attitude towards the issues of cultural transformation faced by the Ottoman society in 1830–1860-s are discussed, in particular, a consideration is made of the contribution of their literary and journalistic legacy to the Turkish nation-building success of the 20th century based on the consolidation of Turkic-speaking populations in Asia Minor and the Balkans. (shrink)

Peculiarities of political corruption in Georgia are studied. Attention is paid to further necessary institutional transformations, which would have influenced decrease of political corruption in this country. It is stated that Georgia is a leader of the region by the criteria of fight against corruption. The country is showing increasing rates in various ratings, including the Corruption Perceptions Index. Attention is given to the fact that corruption in Georgia is decreased to minimum, first of all, at the level of the (...) public and personal services, in the area of taxation, but not in the sphere of political corruption. Author pays attention to the fact that for minimizing political corruption in Georgia number of reforms are needed. For example, empowering of political parties through implementation of more fair financing system, what will enable widening of possibilities oppositional parties, providing of alternative sources of financing of public organizations and freedoms while allocating advertisement in media, etc. In the context of possible changes, resuming of work of Constitutional commission working in Georgia in 2017 is significant. It is stated that in general pluralistic management system has not been formed in Georgia yet. This is impeded by absence of powerful political parties and nonunderstanding of true value of democracy and pluralism by particular political players. (shrink)

The article discusses various “conspiracy theories,” considering them to be a special frame or paradigm of discourse. This frame considers long-term societal and global trends as consequences of a conspiracy aiming to shift power to its initiators. It has been shown that every “conspiracy theory” presupposes a specific marking of social space that can be viewed as an attachment to the “theatre metaphor.” This specific marking of social space does not occur in private by the founder of the method, but (...) to situations of the public execution of power. This thesis discusses and proves the hypothesis that “conspiracy theories” are becoming functional constructs in crisis situations of a so-called “representative democracy,” in ensuring the legitimacy of a respective political regime, in the perspective of crisis management, and in the initiations of effective political actors. The conclusion is that “conspiracy theories” are rather typical for the late-modernity societies than for the politically archaic contexts. These late modernity societies are characterized by secularization, “public sphere” accessibility, influential media, representation crisis, and “shadow” practices. Additionally, it has been shown that totalitarian political ideologies and regimes can be considered as “conspiracy theories” derivatives, resulting in a valid projection of this specific frame or paradigm of discourse on real political conflicts which emerge from societal or global crises. (shrink)

While the Anglo-American tradition approaches speech acts mainly through the philosophy of language, Derrida relocates the field of analysis and considers speech acts within the broader context of political philosophy as well as the philosophy of subject. Instead of asking ‘how and under which conditions certain speech acts change the state of affairs’, Derrida questions the very nature of social links in order to reveal the ‘condition of possibility’ of performative acts in particular and of verbal communication in general. He (...) shows that this condition is the primordial trust between interlocutors. The primordial trust is based on two heterogeneous types of experience: experience of relation to the absolute Other and experience of a sacral universal law that ensures stability of society. The speech act as based of the trust is twofold: it is both an event and a reinstatement of an automatic process. This juxtaposition of the event and the mechanical forms of social life links Derrida’s political thought to that of Arendt. Their agreement, however, does not continue into the realm of the philosophy of subject. Derrida insists on the importance of the hidden conversion of the speaker who privately addresses the Other, whereas for Arendt the self has no genuine access to itself outside of the public domain of the political. (shrink)

Iran’s nuclear program is categorized as the most pressing problems of contemporary international relations in terms of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. Note that this is a problem whose solution depends on the definition of the objectives of the Iranian authorities in the implementation of its nuclear capability. It is therefore quite natural that Iran’s nuclear program should be viewed through the prism of geopolitical orientations of Iran in the Middle East and the formation of alliances «for» and «against» (...) that go far beyond the region. (shrink)