Volodymyr Horbatenko

Yearly journal of scientific articles “Pravova derzhava” Volume 33 (2022), 31-40 p.

DOI: 10.33663/1563-3349-2022-33-31-40

Volodymyr Horbatenko. Messianism as a political disease: Czesław Miłosz about Russia

The proposed article examines the phenomenon of political messianism on the basis of refl ections on Russia by the Polish poet and political thinker Czesław Miłosz. The dual nature of the Russian national consciousness is shown; the peculiarities of the thinker’s interpretation of the political determinants of F. Dostoevsky’s work are revealed; the defi ning factors of Soviet totalitarianism, formed under the infl uence of the Russian national idea, were revealed. Prospects for further socio-political development of Russia have been clarifi ed.

An analysis of the Polish thinker’s work showed that Miłosz never believed that Russia could be democratic. According to him, despite the historical transformations of its inherent political regimes, it is invariably an aggressive geographical space that produces a «captive mind» and is manifested in the creation of a specifi c socio-political order, rejection of individual freedom, the tendency to believe in fate as a historical necessity. In his view, Russia does not succumb to common sense. And in one of his last interviews, the poet noted that after the tragedy in Dubrovka, he will have to study Russia again. Accordingly, he believed that in the future, if this country changes, it will not be «Sakharov», but rather – «Solzhenitsyn».

Given the above, in the context of Russia’s war against Ukraine on February 24, 2022 and the challenge to the entire civilized world, it is important for Ukrainians to understand the problems of Eastern («other») Europe in the creative heritage of Czesław Miłosz in order to fi nd answers, which invariably worries us: «What is the path to Ukraine for Ukraine?». This is extremely important given that, like Czesław Miłosz, the Ukrainian man, in search of «another heaven, another earth,» seeks to return to himself in order to protect himself from further spiritual devastation. Hence, the important perspective tasks for us are to fi nd out on the basis of understanding the legacy of C. Miłosz the role of the creative personality in history and its responsibility for the expressed ideas; substantiation of the importance of the language issue for

national development and human self-realization; identifying the factors and consequences of totalitarian rule in Eastern Europe; drawing attention to the acute political and social problems of historical and modern development; clarifying the needs and prospects for the formation of future coexistence of man and humanity.

Key words: messianic worldview, political messianism, national idea, national consciousness, Russian communism, Russian culture.

References

1.Miłosz C. Russia. Transoceanic visions. Tom I. Dostojewski – our community. Warsaw: Zeszyty Literackie, 2010. S. 279. [pol]. 2. Ushinskene V. Milosh and Russia. Slavistica Vilnensis. 2011. Kalbotyra 56 (2). S. 79. 3. Pomyanovsky E. Milosh and the Devils. About Czeslaw Milosz’s book “Russia”. Gorbanevskaya N. My Milos. Moscow: Novoe izd-vo, 2012. S. 421. [rus]. 4. Milosch C. Land of Ulro: Essays / trans. of Polish. Kyiv: Universe, 2015. S. 229. [ukr]. 5. Milosh Ch. Teaching Dostoevsky. Gorbanevskaya N. My Milos. Moscow: Novoe izd-vo, 2012. S. 317. [rus]. 6. Ushinskene V. Ibid. Pp. 82–83. 7. Milosch C. Dostoevsky and the Western religious imagination. Gorbanevskaya N. My  Milos. Moscow: Novoe izd-vo, 2012. S. 203. [rus]. 8. Ibid. Pp. 210–211. 9. Milosz C. Dostoevsky and Sartre. Gorbanevskaya N. My Milos. Moscow: Novoe izd-vo, 2012. S. 236. [rus]. 10. Ibid. S. 240. 11. Ibid. S. 241. 12. Ibid. S. 242. 13. Milos C. Poor cadet. Gorbanevskaya N. My Milos. Moscow: Novoe izd-vo, 2012. S. 175. [rus]. 14. Ibid. P. 174. 15. Grudzinskaya-Gross I. Milosh and Brodsky: magnetic fi eld; lane with Polish. M. Alekseeva. Moscow: New Literary Review, 2013. P. 117. [rus]. 16. Milosch C. Family Europe / trans. of Polish. Lydia Stefanovska and Yuriy Izdryk. Lviv: Litopys, 2007. S. 137. [ukr]. 17. Ibid. S. 148. 18. Ibid. S. 172. 19. Milosh C. Alphabet. Kharkiv: Treant, 2010. S. 79. [ukr]. 20. Ibid. P. 81. 21. Grudzinskaya-Gross I. Ibid. S. 118. 22. Musienko S. F. Russia in the life and work of Czeslaw Milosz. Day and whole life. The bright memory of Victor Alexandrovich Khorev is visited...: Sat. scientifi c works / Educational institution “Grodno state. University of Yankee Dome”; ed. board: SF Musienko [etc.]. Grodno: YurSaPrint, 2013. S. 189. [rus]. 23. Milosh Ch. Search for the Fatherland / trans. with Polish. Anatoly Nekhaya. Sankt-Peterburh: European House, 2011. Pp. 17–18. [rus]. 24. Miłosz C. Russia. Transoceanic visions. S. 279. [rus].

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