Ильин А.А. Summary (История понятия «революция» у А.И. Герцена и М.А. Бакунина)

NATIONAL RESEARCH UNIVERSITYHIGHER SCHOOL OF ECONOMICSas a manuscriptAndrei A. IlyinHISTORY OF THE CONCEPT “REVOLUTION” IN THE WORKS OF A.I.HERZEN AND M.A. BAKUNINSummary of the PhD thesisAcademic supervisor:Dr.Sc., Vadim S. ParsamovMoscow 2018IntroductionConcept revolyutsiya (revolution) had a special place among vast variety ofnotions and discourses appeared in imperial Russia1. This concept associated withchange of political regimes and drastic transformations in the different spheres ofsociety. It was thought that revolutions were crises, the decisive events.

Some sawthem as an immense danger whereas others believed they were a solution to allmodern problems. So the revolyutsiya had acquired importance long before 19051907 when the first Russian revolution actually took place. Revolution was rather amatter of expectation than of experience.The thesis deals with a history of revolution not on the whole, but with thecrucial stages of its formation. They are perceived through the prism of intellectualbiographies of A.I. Herzen and M.A.

Bakunin, influential public figures,journalists and thinkers of their time.Herzen and Bakunin distinguished from their contemporaries for a numberof features. They were among the first who came to grips with the theory andpractice of revolution. They tackled translation and distribution of the Westernradical ideas that were circulating in the revolutionary movement. They have livedand worked in Western Europe without losing touch with Russia for a long time.Hence, their position of emigrants substantially facilitated them reaching theirgoals.

Other radical authors followed Herzen and Bakunin and thus they reinforcedtheir statuses of creators of the new intellectual and political movement.There is a vast amount of works dedicated to different aspects of Herzen andBakunin intellectual biographies. Nevertheless, revolutionary conceptions of theauthors and also their role in creation of revolyutsiya have always been out ofscholar’s consideration. In the absence of such a study understanding of theirworks and political activities is incomplete.Besides, examination of historical semantics might become a pivotaladdition to the body of literature on Russian radicalism and its opposing forces.1See: Veselitskij V.V. Revolyuciya // Russkij yazyk.

1968. № 3. P. 68–73.Moreover, scrutinizing of the concept helps to clarify the terminological apparatusused by the scholars of Russian 19th century.Present state of researchFirstscholartodevoteaspecialstudytothehistoryofrevolution was E. Rosenstock-Huessy. In order to draw a broad picture, he focusedon West European and North American countries2. Rosenstock-Huessy laid theground for the conceptual history methodology; his influence is noticeable in thesubsequent studies in more or less degree. R. Koselleck and J. Dunn arenoteworthy later scholars of revolution3.Russian revolyutsiya also attracted attention of philosophers, philologistsand historians of ideas.

Distinguished specialist in lexicography V.V. Veselitskywrote a concise paper on the meaning of “revolyutsiya”. He made a series ofobservations relevant to conceptual history although he considered a word, not anotion4. The monograph “European ideas in the socio-political vocabulary of theeducated Russian subject” by D.V. Timofeev comprises a quiet detailed review ofrevolyutsiya in the late 18th – early 19th centuries. He shows it in context of otherconcepts and discourses evolved during the Enlightenment5.There are other studies based on the methodologies far from one ofconceptual history.

“Herzen’s Social Philosophy” by Z.V. Smirnova is one of these2Kamenka E. The Concept of Political Revolution // Revolution / ed. by C.J. Friedrich. N. Y.,1966. P. 122–135. See: Rosenstock–Huessy E. Velikie revolyutsii: Аvtobiografiya zapadnogocheloveka. Tenafly, 1999.3Koselleck R. Critique and Crisis. Cambridge, 1988; Idem. Historical Criteria of the ModernConcept of Revolution // Futures Past: On the Semantics of Historical Time. N.

Y., 2004. P. 43–57; Bulst N., Fisch J. Koselleck R., Meier Ch. Revolyutsiya // Slovar' osnovnykh istoricheskikhponyatij: Izbrannye stat'i: in 2 vols. M., 2014. Vol. 1. P. 520–728; Dunn J. Modern Revolutions:An Introduction to the Analysis of a Political Phenomenon. Cambridge, 1972; Idem. Revolution// Political Innovation and Conceptual Change / ed. by T. Ball, J. Farr, R.L. Hanson.

Cambridge,1989. P. 333–356. See also: Snow V. The Concept of Revolution in Seventeenth–CenturyEngland // The Historical Journal. 1962. Vol. 5. № 2. P. 167–174; Hatto A. “Revolution”: AnEnquiry Into the Usefulness of an Historical Term // Mind. 1949. Vol. 58. № 232. P.

495–517.4Veselitskij V.V. Op. cit.5Timofeev D.V. Evropejskie idei v sotsial'no–politicheskom leksikone obrazovannogorossijskogo poddannogo pervoj chetverti XIX veka. Chelyabinsk, 2011.works6. Also the R.N. Blum study is worth mention. He examined views ofRussian radical authors on revolutionary causes, tactics and outcomes 7. M.P.Odessky and D.M. Feldman “Poetics of Power” takes a different stancescrutinizing the means of expression used in political discourses. Authors denotetheir object as “ideologems” i.e.

discursive “nodal spots”. They took revolyutsiyaas one of these “ideologems” 8.It’s impossible not to say about studies of Herzen and Bakunin speaking ofcurrent state of research. Particular works written in the early 20th centurypreserved the importance in Herzen studies. Their authors have made much toestablish crucial facts and outline turning points of his biography.

These scholarswere M.P. Dragomanov9, V.Ya. Bogucharsky10 and M.K. Lemke. Lemke editedand published the first Collected Works of Herzen. It is still important largelybecause of its extensive and thorough commentaries. They are unique becausethere are sources cited by Lemke that were subsequently lost11.

M.O. Gershenzonwas a friend and supporter of Lemke, who published sources on biographies ofHerzen and N.P. Ogarev12.6Smirnova Z.V. Sotsial'naya filosofiya Gertsena. M., 1973. P. 101–117. See: Isakova I.P.Frantsuzskij revolyutsionarizm v sisteme sotsial'no–politicheskikh vozzrenij А.I. Herzena:avtoref. dis. … kand.

ist. nauk. M., 2007.7Blum R.N. Poiski putej k svobode. Problema revolyutsii v nemarksistskoj obshhestvennoj mysliXIX veka. Tallin, 1985. On Herzen and Bakunin see: P. 87–103, 118–133. See also: AmelinaE.M. Nesostoyatel'nost' anarkhistskogo ideala M.А. Bakunina i P.А. Kropotkina v sveteistoricheskogo materializma // Teoriya revolyutsii. Istoriya i sovremennost': sb. st. / pod red.M.Ya. Koval'zona. M., 1984.

P. 37–48.8Odesskij M.P., Feldman D.M. Poehtika vlasti. Tiranoborchestvo. Revolyutsiya. Terror. M.,2012.9Pis'ma M. А. Bakunina k А. I. Herzenu i N. P. Ogarevu (1860–1874) s prilozheniem egopamfletov, biograficheskim vvedeniem i ob"yasnitel'nymi primechaniyami M. P. Dragomanova.Geneva, 1896; Pis'ma K.

Dm. Kavelina i Iv. S. Turgeneva k Аl. Iv. Herzenu s ob"yasnitel'nymiprimechaniyami M. Dragomanova. Geneva, 1892; Iz bumag redaktsii “Kolokola”. VI. Pis'maCH. k А. I. Herzenu // Vol'noe slovo. 1883. № 61–62. P. 4–7.10Bogucharskij V.Ya. A.I. Herzen M., 1920.11Herzen A.I. Sobranie sochinenij: in 22 vols.

/ ed. by M.K. Lemke. Petrograd., 1915–1923. Vol.1–22. Lemke commented Herzen’s works and letters using his previous studies. Lemke M.K.Ocherki osvoboditel'nogo dvizheniya "shestidesyatykh godov". SPb., 1908; Lemke M.K.Nikolayevskiye zhandarmy i literatura 1826–1855 gg. SPb., 1909.12Russkiye propilei: sobral i prigotovil k pechati M. Gershenzon: in 6 vols. М., 1917. Vol. 4.After the 1917 soviet scholars placed Herzen into the revolutionary traditionstemmed from the Decembrists and culminated in Bolshevism13.

Then there was asplash of interest in Herzen during the Thaw in 1950-1960s. Some researchersheaded by M.V. Nechkina occupied an orthodox position in that period. Theyargued that Herzen had been a leader or “revolutionary centre” and his activitieshad contributed largely to the “first revolutionary situation”, 1859-186114. Therewas also more moderate point of view, whose supporters belonged to the youngergeneration: N.M.

Pirumova, V.I. Poroh, E.G. Bushkaneс, T.I. Usakina, S.D.Gurvich-Lishhiner, N.Ya. Jejdelman, V.A. Prokofev15. Some of these specialistswere involved into preparation of a new edition of Herzen’s Collected Works.Famous historian of socialism V.P. Volgin, B.P. Kozmin, U.G. Oksman, D.D.Blagoj, V.A. Putincev, I.G. Ptushkina, L.K.