Abstract

Author: Jedliński Marek Title: WESTERN CULTURE THROUGH THE EYES OF RUSSIAN ROMANTICS. ON CAPITALISM AND RATIONALISM (Kultura Zachodu oczami romantyków rosyjskich. Rzecz o kapitalizmie i racjonalizmie) Source: Filo-Sofija year: 2011, vol:.12, number: 2011/1, pages: 373-383 Keywords: RUSSIAN ROMANTIC, WESTERN CULTURE, CAPITALISM, RATIONALISM Discipline: PHILOSOPHY Language: POLISH Document type: ARTICLE Publication order reference (Primary author’s office address): E-mail: www:The article presents Russian Romantics’ reflections on Western culture, highlighting their views on capitalism and rationalism. Russian thinkers regarded farewell with religious outlook and the associated development of capitalism as unambiguously negative. According to them, capitalism led to egocentric perception of reality and finally to demise of culture. They called capitalism ‘a contemporary form of barbarism’ as it encouraged fighting and increased the desire to possess. They claimed it would precipitate an acute crisis resulting in regression of civilization. The capitalism-induced process of degradation of Western culture was accelerated by the affirmation of reason. Rationalism limited human freedom. The views were expressed in the oeuvre of the poet Alexei Khomakov and of the historians Stepan Shevyriov and Mikhail Pogodin, as well as, in a more structured manner, in Vladimir Odoyevsky’s novel titled ‘Russian Nights’ (1844)