Vestnik of Orenburg State Pedagogical University. Electronic Scientific Journal. 2018. № 3 (27). P. 107—120
07.00.00 HISTORICAL SCIENCES AND ARCHEOLOGY
UDC 94(47)“16/18”
Kiselev Mikhail Aleksandrovich, Candidate of Historical Sciences
Institute of History and Archeology, Ural Branch of RAS
HOBBES AS A SYMBOLIC FIGURE IN RUSSIAN POLITICAL TEXTS OF THE XVIII — EARLY XIX CENTURIES
Abstract
The article is devoted to the influence of one of the key theorists of natural law — Thomas Hobbes — on Russian political thought of the XVIII — early XIX centuries. It is shown that to the turn of the XVIII—XIX centuries Hobbes had a reputation as a thinker who justified immorality in politics and the arbitrariness of sovereign power, as well as preaching atheism. Such notoriety contributed to the fact that in the Russian political texts of the XVIII — early XIX centuries his name was used as a symbolic figure to designate an unprincipled political adviser and atheist, but not to refer to the real ideas and works of Hobbes. This did not prevent the Russian readers to read original Hobbes treatises and give them a positive assessment. Nevertheless, the negative connotations associated with his name imposed significant restrictions on the dissemination of his works and ideas in Russia.
Key words
Intellectual history, history of Russia of the XVIII century, natural law, T. Hobbes, V. N. Tatishchev.
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Bibliography link to this article:
Kiselev M. A. Hobbes as a symbolic figure in Russian political texts of the XVIII — early XIX centuries. Vestnik of Orenburg State Pedagogical University. Electronic Scientific Journal, 2018, no. 3 (27), pp. 107—120. DOI: https://doi.org/10.32516/2303-9922.2018.27.10.