When studying social thought in Russia, it is impossible to pass by the 40s of the 19th century, when the ideas of the Slavophiles and Westerners were formed. Their disputes did not end the century before last and still have political significance, especially in light of recent events.
19th century decor
At the beginning of the 19th century, Russia remained a serf country with a feudal mode of production, in contrast to Europe, where the process of establishing capitalist bourgeois relations began. Thus, the economic backwardness of the Russian Empire increased, which gave reason to think about the need for reforms. By and large, Peter the Great started them, but the results were insufficient. At the same time, bourgeois relations were forging their way in Europe through revolutions, blood and violence. Competition developed, exploitation intensified. The latest facts did not inspire many representatives of domestic social thought. A quite understandable dispute arose about the further development of the state, especially since in domestic policyemperors rushed from one extreme to another. Slavophiles and Westernizers are two opposite paths for Russia, but each had to lead it to prosperity.
In response to the Slavophil movement
For almost two centuries, in the circle of the upper classes of the Russian state, an admiring attitude towards Europe and its achievements was formed. Russia was transforming more and more, trying to resemble Western countries. A. S. Khomyakov was the first to bring to the attention of the general public thoughts about a special path for the development of our state - on the basis of collectivism, manifested in the rural community. This eliminated the need to emphasize the backwardness of the state and to be equal to Europe. Thinkers, primarily writers, united around the theses expressed. They began to be called Slavophiles. Westerners are a kind of response to the movement described above. Representatives of Westernism, based on the ideas of Georg Hegel, saw common trends in the development of all countries of the world.
Philosophical foundations of Westernism
Throughout the history of human thought, the question formulated by Paul Gauguin has been heard: "Who are we? Where from? Where to?". There are three points of view regarding the last part. Some said that humanity is degrading. Others - what moves in a circle, that is, it develops cyclically. Still others claimed that it was progressing. Westerners are thinkers who hold the latter point of view. They believed that history is progressive, has one vector of development, while Europe overtookother regions of the world and determined the path that all other peoples will follow. Therefore, all countries, like Russia, should be guided by the achievements of European civilization in all spheres of society, without exception.
Westerners against Slavophiles
So, in the 40s of the 19th century, there was an ideological confrontation "Slavophiles - Westerners". A table comparing the main postulates will best demonstrate their views on the past and future of the Russian state.
| Westerners | Comparison questions | Slavophiles |
| One with Europe | Development Path | Original, special |
| Behind the West | The position of Russia | Cannot be compared with other countries |
| Positive, he contributed to the progress of the country | Attitude towards the reforms of Peter the Great | Negative, he destroyed the existing civilization |
| Parliamentary monarchy, constitutional system with civil rights and freedoms | The political structure of Russia | Autocracy, but by the type of patriarchal power. The power of opinion is for the people (Zemsky Sobor), the power of power is for the tsar. |
| Negative | Attitude towards serfdom | Negative |
Representatives of Westernism
An important role in the great bourgeois reforms of the 60-70s was played by Westerners. Representatives of this publicthoughts acted not only as ideological inspirers of state reforms, but also took part in their development. Thus, an active public position was occupied by Konstantin Kavelin, who wrote the Note on the Liberation of the Peasants. Timofey Granovsky, a professor of history, advocated the continuation of the reforms laid down at the beginning of the eighteenth century, for an active educational state policy. Like-minded people united around him, which include I. Turgenev, V. Botkin, M. Katkov, I. Vernadsky, B. Chicherin. The ideas of the Westerners underlie the most progressive reform of the 19th century - the judiciary, which laid the foundations of the rule of law and civil society.
The fate of Westerners
It often happens that in the process of development of a social movement its further fragmentation occurs, that is, a split. Westerners were no exception. This concerns, first of all, the selection of a radical group proclaiming a revolutionary path to bring about changes. It included V. Belinsky, N. Ogarev and, of course, A. Herzen. At a certain stage, there was a rapprochement between the Slavophiles and the revolutionary Westerners, who believe that the peasant community can become the basis for the future structure of society. But it was not decisive.
In general, the opposition of the ideas of the original way of development of Russia, up to the special role of our civilization in the world, and the need for a Western orientation remained. At present, the watershedtakes place mainly in the political sphere, in which Westerners stand out. Representatives of this movement are in favor of integration into the European Union, seeing this as a way out of the civilizational impasse, which they entered back in the period of building socialism.
