In Latin, the word "personalism" means "personality". Personalism is a theistic direction in modern philosophy. Based on the name itself, it is not difficult to guess that it is the personality (that is, the person himself) that acts as the basic creative reality and is the highest spiritual value. This direction appeared at the end of the last century, when its main principles were formed, which will be discussed today.
At a Glance
In Russia, the first ideas of personalism were formulated by Nikolai Berdyaev and Lev Shestov. Further ideas of personalism were reflected in the works of N. Lossky, S. Bulgakov, A. Bely, V. Ivanov. The development of personalism in France is considered a special stage, the beginning for the formation of this direction in the country was the work of Emmanuel Munier.
Under personalism is meant the existential-theistic direction in philosophy, which wasformed in the twentieth century. It is typical for this trend to perceive a person as an acting personality, and not just some abstract subject capable of thought formation.
Personalism is the direction that was the first to recognize a person as the highest spiritual value and creative reality, and the world around him is a manifestation of the creativity of a higher mind (God, the Absolute, etc.). In the foreground of the personalists is the human personality in all its manifestations. Personality becomes a fundamental ontological category, where will, activity and activity are combined with the constancy of existence. However, the origins of this personality are not in the little man himself, but in the only divine beginning.
Christian creeds and its modifications
The main reason for the development of personalism is a severe economic crisis in the 20s-30s. last century. At this time, totalitarian and fascist regimes were established in Europe and Asia, and specific questions of a person's personal existence and the meaning of his existence become visible in all their acuteness.
Other philosophical schools that existed long before the advent of personalism tried to answer these questions, but only here scientists try to answer these questions mainly within the framework of the theistic tradition. Mainly the answers to these questions were formed within the framework of the Christian dogma and its modifications. Catholic traditions can be traced in the writings of Karol Wojtyla, left-Catholic sentiments can be seen in the works of E. Munier and representativesFrench direction. Various Protestant and Methodist views can be traced in the writings of American personalist philosophers.
True, personalists explore the problem of being and human existence not only within the framework of historical, philosophical and theological traditions. Often they turn to texts of fiction, where the concrete historical and universal nature of human existence is simultaneously revealed.
Schools and Christian Personalism
In general, it is customary to distinguish four schools of personalism: Russian, German, American and French. The main subject of research in all directions is creative subjectivity, which is explained only through participation in God.
A person is a separate person, a unique person with a soul in which he focuses divine energy. The human soul is self-conscious and self-directed, but since people are not spiritual, they fall into the first extreme - selfishness.
But there is another extreme collectivism, in which the individual is leveled and merges with the mass. Personalism is exactly the approach that allows you to get away from these extremes and reveal the true essence of a person and revive his individuality. One can come to individuality only by understanding oneself and realizing one's essence as a unique, unique subject.
Freedom and morality
Also, the main problems of personalism are issues of freedom and morality. It is believed that if a person strives for God or goodness and perfection (which,essentially the same thing), she is on the right track. Moral perfection, morality and religiosity will create a society of harmonious personalities.
Also, the philosophy of personalism considers religious and ethical issues. Personalists believe that in order not to injure the divine omnipotence, it is necessary to self-limit the divine will and join it. Each person has the right to choose, it is this right that gives the opportunity to take part in the implementation of a charitable cause in the world. It can be said that divine self-restraint is part of a personalistic ethic, where God's will is limited through human freedom. But if you look at the problem from the other side, it becomes obvious that self-restraint performs the function of theodicy, that is, God's justification from the evil that reigns in the world, bestowed with freedom of choice.
Personality
Personalism in philosophy is, first of all, the doctrine of personality, the recognition of its highest value. And as Paul Ricoeur said, such a position for philosophy is more promising than the knowledge of philosophical thought through the concepts of consciousness, subject and individual.
Exploring the philosophy of personalism, E. Munier comes to the conclusion that the formation of a person as a person completely coincides with the movement of historical progress towards a civilized existence, culture and spirituality.
Personalists, although they believe that their doctrine is based on the idea of multiple "existences", "consciousnesses" and "wills", they defendthe main idea of personalism, according to which God is the supreme person who created all things.
Personality is considered by personalists to be the most important ontological category, because it is a manifestation of being, the continuity of which is determined by human activity. Personality is characterized by three interdependent characteristics:
- Exteriorization. Man's self-realization in the world.
- Interiorization. In-depth self-reflection, that is, a person analyzes the world around him.
- Transcendence. Orientation towards the comprehension of super-categorical being, that is, the understanding of what is revealed only in an act of faith.
Most representatives of personalism in philosophy distinguish between the concepts of "individual" and "personality". They are sure that a person who is a representative of the human race and part of society can be called an individual. That is, it is a kind of social cog. In turn, a person is called a person who has free will and can overcome all social barriers and internal difficulties. A person constantly tries to realize himself, has moral values and is not afraid to take responsibility.
Personalism in Russia
As already mentioned, this philosophical direction developed in four separate schools. In Russia, Nikolai Berdyaev played a major role in the development of personalism. Trying to define this new direction, he wrote the following:
I define my philosophy as the philosophy of the subject, the philosophyspirit, philosophy of freedom, dualistic-pluralistic philosophy, creative-dynamic philosophy, personalistic philosophy and eschatological philosophy.
Domestic personalists liked the idea of confronting the ways of existence, which built the ideal into the principles of predetermined, preset and static. Russian personalists believed that a person is freedom, a breakthrough, spiritual strength. The previous philosophy here was considered dualism, the delimitation of being into: the world and a person who is forced to adapt to it. Berdyaev's personalism in this case says that:
Man was turned into an epistemological subject only in relation to the object, to the objectified world for this objectification. Outside of this objectification, outside of standing in front of being, turned into an object, the subject is a person, a personality, a living being, itself located in the depths of being. Truth is in the subject, but not in the subject, which opposes itself to objectification and therefore distinguishes itself from being, but in the subject as existing.
It was believed that a person is able to know the world's mysteries, only referring to their own spiritual experience, because all the secrets of life can be understood through self-observation. According to his vocation, a person has unlimited possibilities, she is able to create the world and give it meaning.
Russian personalists believed that the meaning of a person, an individual person, lies in complete drama, and not in happiness. Through this approach, the concept is considereddeeply religious, in this it differs from other currents that have spread in the West. It is worth noting that Russian personalism had a huge impact on the development of this trend in Germany and France. So what are the main points of personalism in these countries?
Philosophical movement in Germany
Some elements of the teachings of the idealist philosopher F. Jacobi later began to develop in existentialism and the philosophy of life, although initially it was he who could be called a pioneer in personalism. In Germany, many scientists have worked on this paradigm. For example, M. Scheller was the first to develop the concept of ethical personalism, he considered the value of the individual to be the highest axiological level. W. Stern spoke about critical personalism, and H. Tillike developed theological ethics, which became the basis of personalism in German philosophy.
The issue of inclinations and abilities of the individual, the deep spheres of individual being, acquires special significance in the German direction of development of personalism. Here the “personal method” was declared universal for cognition not only of a person, but of all reality.
American personalism
In America, this philosophical movement began to develop at about the same time as in Russia. Its founder was B. Bone. In addition to him, representatives are R. Fluelling, E. Brightman, J. Howison and W. Hawking. In American personalism, a person is understood as a unique, unique subjectivity projected onto the creation of a social world.
Here philosophers considerthe history of the world as a one-sided process of development of the personal beginning of a person. According to their position, a person reaches the peak of bliss in union with God. Here, religious and ethical issues play a key role in teaching. Also, attention is paid to issues of free choice and morality. It is believed that the moral self-improvement of a person can lead to the creation of a harmonious society.
France
In this country, personalism was formed as a doctrine in the 30s. last century. The founder of this trend was E. Munier. Together with him, this doctrine was developed by D. de Rougemont, J. Isar, J. Lacroix, P. Landsberg, M. Nedonsel, G. Madinier. In these "dashing" 30s, the left-Catholic followers of French personalism proposed to create a philosophical doctrine of the human personality as the main problem of modern civilization and assign worldwide significance to this trend.
In France, the concept of personality has gone through a long period of development. It began to take shape when philosophers began to comprehend all the humanistic traditions known to history, which went back to the time of Socrates. In personalism, great importance was attached to the concepts of man, which were developed in the twentieth century. Naturally, among them were existential and Marxist teachings.
The followers of personal philosophy interpreted the problems of the Christian doctrine of man in their own way. They tried to weaken the dogmatism inherent in theology and introduce new content, more suitable for the modern world.
Munier saidthat personalism appeared in order to protect the individual, because it is the peak from which all paths originate, therefore it will actively test against totalitarianism. A person is engaged in the world, that is, he is present in it as an active, meaningful and responsible being who is in the world “here and now”. Interaction with the world a person constantly improves himself, but only when he correlates himself with the Absolute, he receives the right life guidelines.
Flow within flow
Personalism can be called a specific form of social utopia, it is interesting and unusual for its time, because then a person was just a cog in the social system, and not a person with high potential and unlimited possibilities. But that is not all. In this philosophical trend, another direction was formed - dialogical personalism. This direction puts the problem of communication (social dialogue) as the basis for studying. It is believed that dialogue is the basis for the formation of personality. That is, without communication with their own kind, a person cannot become a full-fledged personality.
This direction explores new categories, such as "I", "You" and "We", thereby trying to overcome the I-centrism of classical philosophical teachings. Here, knowledge is taken to a new ontological level, where spirituality and creativity reign, and the concepts of “I”, “You”, “We” become new existential categories. The most prominent representatives of this trend include Martin Buber, Mikhail Bakhtin, Emmanuel Levinas and others.
Personalism in philosophy is a direction in the center of which is a person, and only he can solve all social problems and conflicts if he manages to become a real person. Otherwise, society will remain an ordinary mechanism that is programmed for a faceless existence, because creation and creativity are unthinkable without real personalities.
