Ideas and Ideals

The paper poses the problem of the background as the conceptual apparatus of economic science, which is formed in the process of its historical development. The subject of the research is the study of fundamental works on the history and theory of scientific thought of the economic life of society; textbooks on the history of economic thought, economics and the economic way of thinking; scientific works that claim a notable contribution to the formation of a conceptual background. We have suggested that the diverse scope of ideas and concepts about the economic life of society needs to be aligned in a systematic approach that includes two basic options. In the traditional systemic-structural approach, the studied phenomena are derived from a single cause and a single foundation, which is most fully expressed in the Marxist labour theory of value. Difficulties arising in substantiating the key provisions of this theory have cast doubt on its scientific status and the possibility of practical application. General systems theory (GTS) has proven its heuristic potential in various fields of scientific knowledge, including modern microeconomic theory, which widely uses not only differential equations but also set theory, game theory, etc., and looks more promising for most representatives of the scientific community. The rejection of the cognitive potential of the systemic-structural approach seems premature. It makes it possible to analyze at the categorical level of scientific knowledge, starting from the foundations of Plato and Aristotle dialectics, using the logic of the scientific thought development presented in Hegel’s works, and its peak in the materialistic dialectics of Karl Marx. We should not forget what an important part of neoclassicism is the Austrian school, which ignores the calculus of infinitely small increments of utility and costs and gives preference to the systemic and structural vision of the subject. The authors advocate the synthesis of two fundamental directions of the systemic approach to the economic life of society, which will preserve the achievements of classical political economy as a background for modern economic thought.

In recent decades, economists are actively entering the space of other disciplines. This movement of economists into the field of research of other sciences was called “economic imperialism”. The result of this process is a more realistic representation the nature of man in economic science and the conditions for the formation of human behavior. One of the objects of economic research is culture: values, beliefs and models of human behavior. Analyzing the concept of cultural codes, V. L. Tambovtsev points out that the study of the individual cultural institutions influence can be more effective than the research work within the concept of “general - cultural” factors, i.e. culture as a “homogeneous monolith”. It is more productive to use the “piece by piece” strategy to explore its position on cultural phenomena, studying  the impact of a single cultural phenomenon on society. In this case, the influence of certain cultural institutions on the formation of certain behaviors is of interest. The purpose of the article is to analyze philosophy as a specific model of behavior, the formation of which can contribute to certain cultural practices. Objectives: to define philosophy as a specific model of behavior; to analyze the relationship of philosophy with value attitudes common in society; to indicate the potential of analyzing philosophy as a specific model of behavior for an economist. Conclusion: philosophy may be of interest to an institutional economist as a specific practice, i.e. as a model of human behavior that can be studied in a language of institutional economics. The movement of “economic imperialism” in the direction of philosophy will help to better understand the nature of man and the logic of his choice of actions.

The article discusses the philosophical problems of the technocratic, bureaucratic nature of modern scientific management, indifferent to the moral sense of man. The purpose of the article is to consider the foundations of the humanistic concept of scientific management as an incentive moral communication that inspires a person. The author introduces the concepts of ‘metaphysics of management’ and ‘inspirational management’. He also determines the main properties of inspirational scientific management: the moral nature of values ​​and ideals, synergy, thought-sensory rationality, the unity of explicit and implicit, scientific and non-scientific knowledge.
Inspirational management is carried out in the process of popularizing scientific knowledge, system integration. The process of scientific management based on system integration presupposes, firstly, orientation of scientists towards moral meanings and feelings, professional self-improvement and civic activity. Secondly, it implies a team of like-minded people united by a common dream, values ​​and ideals. Thirdly, it is based on the development of applied scientific theories, social technologies, which have a symbolic character of incentive communication. Fourthly, in the process of extensive discussions, the popularization of scientific knowledge is taking place. Knowledge and scientific management acquire the mental-sensory character of persuasion. Systematic scientific thinking, the pathos of moral feeling induces a person to believe in his own strength, to achieve the set goal, to become better. It is noted that inspirational management has the properties of science and art. The author considers the main incentive symbols of the inspirational concept of management: system thinking, the meaning of life at work, scientific knowledge, an educated person - a professional and a citizen, progress, globalization of mankind, a social idealized project. The basic principles of the inspirational concept of management are based on the methods of dialectics and synergetics. The author comes to the conclusion that metaphysics of management presupposes the disclosure and realization of the essential moral human qualities and meanings. It is substantiated that the metasystem for the development of inspirational management is a social idealized project that includes elements of scientific, philosophical knowledge, dreams, utopia, ideology, moral, including religious values ​​and ideals.

This article analyzes the phenomenon of ‘overkill’, which usually accompanies human life as an example of non-constructive behavior. In this article, the author considers the ‘overkill’ phenomenon in the late Imperial and Soviet period in Russia, when overkill was de facto constituted and became one of the ways to manage society. The author proves that with the development of society, the government begins to need overkill as a means of effective management policy, which allows testing public opinion while achieving the goals set by the government. Taking on the task of implementing global and rapid violent changes, the government faces resistance from people. The author shows that overkill transitions from a household phenomenon to the one used by the state, gains a special quality. The overkill that occurs when the message of power is conveyed to the population is the simplest and most effective way to compensate for the lack of feedback mechanisms between the government and society. This phenomenon has proven necessary for the authoritarian and especially totalitarian authorities – they use it to legitimize themselves, explain mistakes, and declare people guilty. In the Communist system, overkill played an important role as a stimulator and regulator in political, socio-economic, and cultural life. Mobilization campaigns, so popular in the USSR, used this ‘overkill’ method as a prerequisite for success. Thus, ‘overkill’ has become an important and integral way of interaction between a dictatorial state and society.

This article discusses the specifics of Japanese modernization laid down during the Meiji reforms, which is believed to have achieved a kind of viable synthesis of Western and non-Western patterns of behavior, thinking patterns, and complexes of symbolic elements and ideas. Japan in the second half of the 19th century was faced with the task of catching up with Western countries, which implied, for example, copying certain Western traditions and social institutions. Nevertheless, Japan managed to carry out its modernization quite successfully, without losing its national identity. Today Japan is already an object itself, whose modernization experience other countries are trying to copy. Thus, under the conditions of globalization, Japanese behavioral patterns and other socio-cultural elements are spreading.

The authors of this article utilize the concept of Eric Hobsbawm’s “invented traditions” to reveal the specifics of Japanese modernization. This approach assumes that Meiji modernity was designed or “invented” by some consensus of the Japanese elites of that time. Thus, in order to achieve modernity, Japanese elites had to “invent” traditions in a certain way, so that people could accept said traditions as their own. The invention of traditions itself, in turn, is a complex process of constructing socio-cultural patterns during which new practices and behaviors are made to seem older than they actually are, emphasizing their originality and connection with the people’s past.

In Meiji Japan, various groups of Japanese elites had their own designs for the invention of traditions, in other words, the achievement of modernity. The authors conclude that the winning model implemented by the Meiji government was quite successful and allowed Japan to compete with Western powers on relatively equal terms.

Topic: The philosophy and views on the process of nation building of Ziya Gökalp – the revolutionary ideologist of Turkish nationalism and one of the founding fathers of Kemalism, who played a key role in the articulation of Turkish national identity in the early 20^th century. It is hard to overestimate his impact on Mustafa Kemal Atatürk: the founder of the Turkish Republic described Gökalp as the “father of my thoughts”. Gökalp’s ideas come together in the concept of the “Turkish ideal” or “mefkure” (Turk. mefkûre). The principle of “mefkure” was subsequently adopted by the majority of nationalist thinkers.

Methodology: Contextual analysis of sources on the research topic; historical comparativism; synthesis and generalization of factual material.

Results of the study: Ziya Gökalp’s ideas were focused on the transition from the multinational Ottoman state to a national state and the promulgation of the Turkish Republic. They were largely derived from the philosophy of Émile Durkheim, including idealist epistemology, positivist methodology and solidarist corporatism - together known as positivist idealism. Gökalp’s ideas can be summarized as cultural Turkism, ethical Islamism and Durkheimian solidarism. Gökalp succeeded in synthesizing different philosophical approaches, while avoiding eclectic mixing of ideas.

Conclusions: Gökalp’s nationalism was heavily influenced by the West, though he tried to withstand this influence. The romantic principle of the “Turkish ideal” largely reiterates the concept of Volksgeist (German: “spirit of the people”) characteristic of German nationalism. Gökalp’s works clearly illustrate one of the key internal problems of Turkish nationalism – the question of how to restore national self-respect, which had been undermined by the prolonged decline of the Ottoman state and its stature in the eyes of the West. Gökalp’s philosophy clearly links the Young Turk ideology with the Atatürk regime. But in the course of his life, Gökalp’s views underwent significant changes, as he gradually turned away from the principles of the 1908-1909 revolution (constitutional monarchy, Ottomanism, Islamic reformism etc.) and laid the theoretical foundations of Kemalism and the modern Turkish state.

The article discusses the problem of the relationship between history and memory as two independent forms of using the past within the framework of P. Ricoeur’s philosophy. The value of Ricoeur’s approach lies in the fact that he analyzes this problem at different levels, starting with the essence and mechanisms of work of both phenomena. The analysis of the interrelation and rivalry between history and memory allows us to take a fresh look at the problem of the referentiality of historical texts, namely, to shift the focus from the gap between the sign and the referent to their necessary connection. On the basis of the phenomenology of memory proposed by Ricoeur, it is possible to organize various forms of reference to the past. As forms of saving experience, history and memory carry a fundamental claim to truth, despite the fact that in both cases the image of the past is produced by the imagination. Imagination can be visualizing (allowing to see) or derealizing (cutting off from reality), therefore both memory and history need ways to verify this claim to truth. For memory, this way is recognizing, which is a subjectively experienced sensation, and for history it is the possibility of a permanent revision of its constructions in a process that Ricoeur calls standing for (représentance (Fr.)). These ways must remain autonomous, allowing both to realize its function. For memory, this is the keeping of the identity, the continuity of the subject, and for history, it is the implementation of a critical assessment and reorganization of experience, which is constantly enriched with new challenges and new data. Recognition of the memory independence restrains some actors usurping access to the past so far as they believe only they have the correct memory. History, on the other hand, through critical procedures, performs a corrective function and treats the past as the claim to truth, despite the subjectivity of memory.

The article considers the controversy between philosopher V.S. Solovyov and Antony (Khrapovitsky) on the relationship between the Kingdom of Heaven and temporal kingdoms, i.e. about the relationship between the church and the state. The study touches upon certain biographical moments – the circumstances of the acquaintance and the first meeting of Solovyov and Antony, as well as the history of their personal communication. The article analyzes in detail Antony’s criticism of the book “Russia and the Universal Church”, written in French, which was banned in Russia, examines the dispute between the philosopher and the future church hierarch about the nature of the church, about the essence of Christian love, true Christianity, the essence of papist teaching and the truth and untruth of Catholicism.

The research methodology involves a comprehensive historical and philosophical analysis of sources. In order to analyze the basic concepts discussed in polemics (“church”, “state”, “love”, etc.), to trace the ideas of thinkers, it is necessary to see the integrity of their worldview and views, and for this to carry out a certain synthesis based on the corpus of works, as well as public letters and personal correspondence of the authors. At the same time, philosophical and categorical analysis is required to clarify the discussed ideas and concepts. In addition, the research involved the methods of historical and philosophical reconstruction, comparative analysis, systematization of conclusions and results, as well as historical and biographical analysis.

As a result of the study, the author examines personal relationships between Solovyov and Antony, which remained respectful and friendly, despite the worldview and ideological differences, as well as the controversy of the philosopher and the hieromonk about the Kingdom of God and the temporal kingdoms, about common good and personal salvation. Solovyov’s theocratic project, which presupposes the transformation of the Christian state into a universal church, was unacceptable to Anthony, who believed that church and state should be separated in order to avoid the redemption of the church. If Solovyov is convinced that individual salvation is impossible without concern for the common good, that salvation is carried out in the collective organism of mankind, Antony comes to the conclusion that for a Christian concern for his own soul is primary, and the common good by itself grows around the righteous

Abstract

The subject of the article is the text-mentative and its functioning in the Russian literature of the XX-XXI centuries. The concept of ‘mentative’ (which appeared in linguistics since the beginning of the XXI century by analogy with ‘narrative’) means a text with a mental reference, dialogically responding to the word and thought of the other. In linguistics, there is a typology of communicative strategies of the mentative in relation to the speech of the other. There are 8 strategies, they are equal logically, but unequal in dialogical and, consequently, heuristic relations.

In Russian fiction, the text-mentative was established in the middle of the XIX century. That was due to the beginning of the stage of convergence of the artistic and non-artistic word in Russian literary evolution. The novel “War and Peace” by L. Tolstoy, containing multiple mentative fragments and entire chapters, became a clear sign of the mentative appearance in fiction. The stage of convergence of the artistic and non-artistic word continued until the end of the XX century, and all this time the specific weight and importance of the mentative in Russian fiction were steadily increasing.

The article shows functioning of the mentative in the ideologically and artistically most important works of Russian literature of the mid – late XX century. These are novels by B. Pasternak “Doctor Zhivago”, A. Bitov “Pushkin’s House”, V. Pelevin “Generation ‘P’”, A. Chudakov “The Mist Falls on the Old Steps”, texts by A. Solzhenitsyn, V. Rasputin, V. Makanin. In all these works, the mentative allows us to formulate the key thoughts for the self-consciousness of the XX century Russian literature: morality, truth, the meaning of life and the danger of consumerism. In the XXI century, in the works by M. Kucherskaya, E. Chizhova, E. Vodolazkin, the mentative also occupies a large place, appearing in ideologically important fragments of works.

As a result of the above, it is concluded that the role of the mentative in Russian literature of the XX century was steadily increasing. The authors of the article suppose that we witness starting of the stage of mental thematization of writing in the Russian literary evolution in the XXI century.

The knightly ideal of N.A. Berdyaev is one of the major components of his creativity: “the spirit of chivalry” is a unique alternative to “the spirit of the bourgeois”, to “world philistinism” and total, self-sufficing, godless statehood. Berdyaev believes in the great historic mission of Russia – to become a connecting link between the East and the West, to unite two streams of world history. The First World War adds an urgency to these themes. The Russian thinker interprets this war as an epoch of great tests, hopes that it will lead to spiritual awakening of Russia, will give courage and nobleness to the Russian people, provide the Russian person with attributes of the knight. Berdyaev is convinced of the necessity of qualitative changes of Russian national consciousness and being. War as a phenomenon of a spiritual order shows that only spiritual power can eradicate violence in the world. According to the well-known concept of “the new Middle Ages”, the barbarity of war overcomes bourgeois decadence and opens the potential of the humane person; war expands culture horizons, opens new resources. Russia needs people of dignity and honour, people who realize the greatness of divine power. Russian society should join the world civilization; internally accept Christian revelations about humanity. Berdyaev confirms that the idea of knightly service is anticipated in Christian morality, it’s crucially important for the history of personal formation. The precondition of success of the historic world mission of Russia is the liberation of the ‘Russian soul’ from domination of womanly, natural, potentially chaotic elements. The problem of choosing between the East and the West, declares Berdyaev, defines the fate of Russia. Russian national consciousness should accept the cultural heritage of the West imminently. Only focusing on the self-forged knightly courage and responsible creative personality will allow Russia to change spiritually, and successfully solve problems on a global historical scale.

This study is devoted to outlining the influence of Platonism on Orthodox theology.

Platonism, understood in a broad sense, is traditionally associated with Orthodox theology, but this connection itself remains not described sufficiently, which creates a number of difficulties. The last is represented by a scientific tendency to build historical and philosophical concepts, which do not correspond to facts, but also create such perspectives that lead to further misconceptions. This includes the idea that Platonism is more expressed in Eastern theology, and Aristotelianism in Western (or vice versa), the idea of theological disputes as conflicts of philosophical traditions, etc.

The influence of the Platonic tradition was expressed in the works of many famous authors, for example, Origen, Evagrius Ponticus and Pseudo-Dionysius, but this fact still did not receive proper analysis in the scientific community. So, although all these authors adopted some of platonic conceptions - they were condemned by the Orthodox Church, then their concepts were adopted and modernized, and only then they were written in Orthodox theology. Platonism is definitely connected with Orthodox theology, but primarily because of the philosophical language and in lesser degree due to Platonic concepts.

In Russian religious thought Platonism is becoming more and more popular thanks to Soloviev’s sophiology and German idealism, however, this philosophical and theological conceptions were condemned by Russian orthodox councils, remaining mostly in writings of individual philosophers and researchers.

Thus, we believe that reference to “Christian Platonism” in order to explain the whole system of orthodox theology is unjustified. But, on the other hand, philosophical and theological systems (such as, for example, the philosophy of S. N. Bulgakov or Gaius Marius Victorinus) may well have this name.

This paper considers the Kantian philosophical tradition in western language philosophy of the XXth century, describes the ways of its influence and argues the existence of the “Kantian language philosophy tradition” as a continuous stage to be a certain evolutionary line in the history of philosophy. By now one ignores the influence of Kantian philosophy upon “those not pee linguistic turn” and does not esteem I. Kant as a philosopher of language, nor counts his influence in this sphere. The mode of this influence is uncertain and represents various views from synthesis to direct evolution. To discover this issue the author of this paper tries to find a metaphysic core element in language ontology, inherited by the analytic philosophers from I. Kant’s writings; conducts a comparative research of the aforementioned authors’ papers, extracts derived from I. Kant core metaphysical aspect in language ontology and a textological analysis, historical reconstruction. The researchers ignore historical and ontological links between language philosophy, Kantian and the analytical tradition due to a philological development of academic linguistics in the late XIXth – XXth centuries. Following the Kantian tradition in philosophy theories of the analytic philosophers (particularly W. Qwine and P. Strawson) contain the metaphysical core in language ontology, primarily in its syncretic essence of logical, semantic and utterly linguistic categories (i. e. the scheme of concepts, sense, universals, etc.). Syncretism of logical and linguistic essence in terms is also typical for the Kantian philosophy and characterizes the Kantian philosophy to be a source for the linguistic one, and a fully expressed the “Kantian language philosophy tradition”.

The article is devoted to the analysis of ethical theories that were formulated in a neo-pragmatic discourse, in particular to the study of preconditions for an imaginative transition.  Since forming a new image of ethics is done by supporters of pragmatism by criticizing the rationalistic tradition, the categories that have traditionally been associated with the sphere of irrational come first, related to sensuality and aesthetics. Therefore, the effectiveness of solving moral issues in pragmatic ethics directly depends on the extent to which the resources of imagination are actively used. The author of the article offers to use the new term “imaginative transition” to fix the specifics of those ethical theories. There is a historical and comparative review in order to trace the transformation of the idea of the imagination. The author indicates the conceptual foundations of universalist ethical theory, where imagination belonged to the sphere of sensuality and had no privileged status. In formulating ethical concepts, the rationalistic tradition, which dates back to early Greek philosophy, was primarily based on gnoseology, and the main virtue was wisdom that was associated with an enlightened mind. Followers of Plato’s fundamentalism and Descartes’ objectivism treated the imagination as a derivative of blind feelings. The article has shown that the main actor in the transition from the rationalistic tradition to the romantic one, in which imagination will be interpreted as the highest form of spirit activity, was Immanuel Kant.  Based on the hermeneutic analysis of the philosopher’s texts, it has been discovered that the ability to imagine is crucial to the thinking process for Kant, and knowledge is interpreted as a synthesis of sensuality and reasoning in the activities of the imagination. The author shows that Kant’s aesthetics is the result of the problem of coordinating the pure and practical mind. The author comes to the conclusion, that the adherents of pragmatism, considering the ability of imagination as having moral force, develop an idea which was first clearly formulated by Kant.

The article presents the actual problem of teenagers’ suicides as a reflection of the realities of the modern information society.The research methodology was made up of a general scientific method, namely the analysis of scientific literature on the research topic, as well as methods of statistical data analysis, which made it possible to prove that the modern information society increases the threats in the field of adolescent suicide. As a result of the analysis, it was revealed that the individual psychological characteristics of children and teenagers affect the formation of their propensity for suicidal behavior. In adolescence, children have not yet formed an adequate attitude towards death, which can lead to committing suicide for seemingly insignificant reasons.The main conclusion that we have made basing on the results of the study is the following: adolescence is a very dangerous and unstable period in the development of an individual. Social structure, environment, various events - all these things can have a detrimental effect on the vulnerable, fragile psyche of a teenager.The Internet is a separate and very significant threat, as the global network contains dangerous content. In a modern fragmented society, a teenager is usually left to himself, and if, at the same time, he does not have an emotional contact with his parents (and this contact, as a rule, is absent during this period even in fairly prosperous families), then the teenager has no one to share his experiences or consult.Thus, an unhealthy society creates unhealthy conditions for the development of future generations, and as a result, modern children choose death without even knowing life.