Motherland: A Philosophical History of RussiaThis landmark book, by the acclaimed author of Nietzsche in Turin, offers a unique interpretation of Russian history and thought. Lesley Chamberlain, novelist, traveller and historian of ideas, has been pondering the enigma of Russia for over thirty years. She finds that during the last two centuries Russian intellectuals have asked two fundamental questions: 'what makes a good man?' and 'what is the right way to live?' In their attempts to answer these questions, Chamberlain shows how these thinkers neglected the role of the individual, prioritising instead the need to end injustice and autocracy. Motherland is an invaluable introduction to the key Russian thinkers and an eloquently narrated journey in the history of ideas from a highly individual writer. |
Contents
The Men of the 1820s | 5 |
The Beautiful Souls | 20 |
The New Men | 47 |
Copyright | |
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Alexandre Kojčve anarchism anarchist Bakhtin Bakunin beautiful soul believed Belinsky Berdyaev Berlin Bulgakov Cartesian Chaadaev Chernyshevsky Communist concept creative critical Descartes dialectical materialism Dostoevsky Edie educated epistemic epistemic virtue ethical European existence faith Feuerbach Frank freedom German German Idealism Goethe Hegel Hegelian Heidegger Herzen hope human idea ideal idealist imagination individual individualistic integrity intellectual intelligentsia Isaiah Berlin Kant Khomiakov Kireevsky knowledge labour Lavrov Lenin liberal living London lyubomudry Marx Marxism meaning metaphysics Mikhail Bakunin Mikhailovsky mind modern moral Moscow mystical nature Nikolai nineteenth century objective Oblomov obshchina Odoevsky Odoevsky's Pascal peasant Pisarev Plekhanov poetic political progress rational reality reason rejected Revolution revolutionary Romantic Russian philosophy Russian religious Russian thinkers Russian thought Schelling Schiller scientific sense Sergei Bulgakov Shestov Slavophiles social society Solovyov Soviet spiritual St Petersburg theory things Tolstoy tradition truth Utilitarian values vision Walicki wanted West Western wrote