"Russia — Europe" in the mirror of Russian philosophical thought (first half of the 19th century)

Abstract

The article presents the interpretation of the problem "Russia — Europe" in Russian philosophical thought in the first half of the 19th century. The analysis includes questions about the role of Russia in European history and the socio-cultural factors of its national development. The author shows that during this period, the main vector of discussion of the topic was associated, on the one hand, with the idea of preserving the "national face" by the Russian people in expanding political and cultural contacts with Europe, and on the other hand, with justifying its readiness / ability to live in the world of national and cultural diversity. The Enlightenment became the initial basis of all philosophical reflections in this vein, and the interrelation of the national and universal principles of the historical process was considered as a mechanism of the civilized life of mankind and positive contacts of peoples with each other. In this research context, the national identity of Russia correlated with the achieved level of civilization: with the nature of relations between the state and civil society, power and people, legal rights and personal freedom of citizens. Within the framework of this approach, the methodological principles of the analysis of the problem "Russia — Europe" were formed, ideas were proposed, the philosophical and worldview meanings of which, as shown in the article, correlate with the key issues of today's models and projects of Russian national development.