N.Ya. Danilevsky on geopolitical relations between Russia and the West in the context of the current situation in the country and the world (to the 200th anniversary of the birth)

Abstract

The article is devoted to the consideration of the theoretical heritage of the outstanding Russian philosopher, scientist, political publicist N.Ya. Danilevsky, the 200th anniversary of his birth was recently celebrated by the scientific community of the country. The au­thor of the article focuses on two main discoveries made by Danilevsky. Firstly, this refers to the theory of cultural-historical types, which was the basis for the formulation of geopolitical patterns, and this is his second discovery, explaining Russia’s attitude to Europe, to the political system of European states. After a long oblivion, the article em­phasizes, the name of Danilevsky in the early 90s of the last century was returned to do­mestic philosophy and science. Today is the time of the triumph of the civilizational ap­proach in Russia. The rapid growth of interest in the ideas of Danilevsky led, in fact, to the formation of a new direction in the social sciences and humanities – the domestic school of civilizational analysis of the history of Russian society in the context of world history. The article discusses in detail one of the main geopolitical patterns, whether Eu­rope is an integral political system and what Russia has to do with it. According to the au­thor, Danilevsky convincingly shows that the interests of Russia and Europe are mutually opposed and that in the political sense Russia is not only not Europe, but Anti-Europe. Danilevsky’s responses to Russophobic criticism from the West have become especially relevant today and, in practical terms, are in demand by Russian society. In conclusion, it is said about the conservative views of Danilevsky, about the possibility of their secular interpretation. The question of how social conservatism can become today a promising ideological construct for the development of the Russian state and society is discussed. The article is devoted to the analysis of discussions on the issue of a “special path” of Russia’s development, which have recently become more and more acute.