The Revolution and Intelligentsia in G.G. Shpet’s An Outline of the Development of Russian Philosophy

Abstract

The article analyzes G.G. Shpet’s understanding of the October Revolution, as reflected in his An Outline of the Development of Russian Philosophy. The author  examines  Shpet’s  theory  of  the  types  of  intelligentsia  (ecclesiastical intelligentsia, ministerial intelligentsia, and oppositional intelligentsia) and their attitude to the Russian Revolution, which Shpet treats as an ideal notion aimed at promoting cultural development. The author maintains that, according to Shpet, oppositional intelligentsia, forming the new Soviet government, and the former ministerial intelligentsia treated culture similarly. Thus, in the sphere of cultural development, Soviet Russia abode by tsarist cultural policies. This enables the author to conclude that Shpet views the Russian Revolution as a wasted opportunity to change the relationship between government and culture. Having analyzed Shpet’s ideas, one can conclude that the political events of 1917 cannot be truly considered revolutionary, since the idea of a revolution implies a radical change of the existing political order, something which can hardly be said in case of the “Revolution of 1917.” The history of opposition vs. government confrontation in the tsarist epoch appears to be similar to the social processes associated with the dissident movement in the USSR. The article gives special attention to Shpet’s interpretation of N.G. Chernyshevsky’s work. The article shows that Shpet rightly links Chernyshevsky’s creative work with 18th-century European Enlightenment, comparing Chernyshevsky with Voltaire. Shpet believes that Russian oppositional intelligentsia can be associated with the Enlightenment. The article uses a range of traditional methods of history of philosophy: hermeneutics, comparative method, and historical reconstruction.