№ 21 (2) 2013 Abstracts and Keywords Intellectual History Ivan Novik. Apologetics, Search for Allies and Struggle for Orthodoxy in 1920s. The Role of Belarusian Soviet Philosophers in the Creation of Canon of Soviet Marxism Th e article considers the first stages of formation of Soviet philosophy in Belarus. It analyses instability of the Marxist canon of 1920s, the foundation of new terminology, variations in understanding of philosophical thought. Particular attention is given to the works of famous Soviet philosophers who were born and made their academic careers in Belarus:
Siamion Valfson, Salamon Kacenbohen, Ruvim Vydra, Bernard Bychoŭski. The article also estimates the infl uence of these authors on the creation of canon of Soviet Marxism and on teaching of Marxism in the USSR universities.
Keywords: Marxism, Belarusian Philosophy, Siamion Valfson, Salamon Kacenbohen, Historical Materialism, History of Ideas.
Document On the Dissertation of Ali Osam Abed Ali. The Decision of the Higher Attestation Commission of the Republic of Belarus of 13.05.2013 (Introduction by Andrej Kazakievič) Th e dependence of political science on ideology and the absence of academic standards remain a permanent problem in Belarus. The official document suggested here presents the decision of the Higher Attestation Commission of the Republic of Belarus to decline the award of PhD in History degree. It demonstrates the depth of these negative processes and is notable for its peculiar reasoning. In fact the dissertation was declined because the author did not use the conspiracy theory in his argument and he also lacked ideological accuracy and anti-Americanism. Meanwhile, academic and scientific reasoning is not mentioned in this decision.
Keywords: Belarusian Science, Political Science, Dissertations, Ideological Control, Higher Attestation Commission, Anti-Americanism.
Intellectual Situation №21(2)/2013 12 № 21 (2) 2013 Discussion Intellectual Situation of Belarus. A survey – Alieh Manajeŭ, Siarhej Dubaviec, Andrej Laŭruchin, Alieś Kraŭcevič, Mikalaj Liavonaŭ, Zmicier Majbarada, Aliaksej Lastoŭski, Piotra Rudkoŭski, Andrej Jahoraŭ Th e survey of nine well-known Belarusian intellectuals on the general intellectual situation in Belarus. The text presents the answers to the questions on the influence of intellectuals on the current state of Belarusian culture and nation, and the strategy of intellectual activity in modern conditions of crisis. The respondents also answer what political, social and cultural challenges Belarusian intellectuals face today.
Keywords: Intellectual Situation, Intellectuals, Academic Community, Belarusian Society, Belarusian Culture.
Intellectual Situation: Circumstances and Self-determination of Thinking Valiancin Akudovič (Valiantsin Akudovich). Discourse of Modern Belarusian Th inking Th e text gives a short author's vision of the main stages of evolution of modern Belarusian thinking from the start of 1990s to present days.
Keywords: Belarusian Thinking, Intellectual History, History of Philosophy, History of Ideas.
Tacciana Ščytcova (Tatiana Shchyttsova). Negative Dialectics of Liberation:
Philosophy in Belarus after 1991 Th e text offers a brief analysis of the logic and conditions of development of Belarusian philosophy since 1991. It considers the main problems and challenges for philosophy as academic discipline and as cultural phenomenon in modern Belarus.
Keywords: Belarusian Philosophy, Intellectual Situation, History of Ideas, Acade mic Community.
Uladzimir Mackievič (Uladzimir Matskevich). Practical Mind of Our Time Th e text offers a brief analysis of Belarusian intellectual situation made from the seven points. The author considers the relations and conflicts between the “clear” and “practical” mind. He also offers his own interpretation of the problem and its inclusion into the earlier intellectual discussions.
Keywords: Intellectual Situation, Practical Mind, Engineering, Marx, Kant.
Tacciana Vadalažskaja (Tatsiana Vadalazhskaya). Intellectual Situation as Situation of Thinking 13 № 21 (2) 2013 Th e theses briefly describe the author's definition of intellectual situation in Belarus.
Intellectual situation is considered as a situation of thinking. The authors defines the conditions of thinking as agonality and substantial strain, connection with practice and the existence of long-lasting unresolved problems.
Keywords: Intellectual Situation, Thinking, Intellectual Community.
Pavel Barkoŭski (Pavel Barkouski). Intellectual Manifesto Here and Now Th e article presents the author's understanding of intellectual situation in modern Belarus.
It formulates the current needs and challenges for intellectual community – the need to integrate one's thinking into historical context, criticise and redefine the meanings in modern society, reject the descriptiveness of thinking and switch to its theming.
Keywords: Intellectual Situation, Intellectuals, Historical Context, Deconstruction.
Ihar Padporyn. How we Think (Critical Outline of Research and Researchers of Society in Belarus) Th e text offers a brief outline of the way of thinking of Belarusian intellectuals who study the modern society. Among its features are special relations (dependence) on authorities, spread of ideological rhetoric and ideological justification of ideas, obsolescence of terminology and theoretical schemes, obscurity in presentation of thoughts.
Keywords: Belarusian Science, State of Social and Humanitarian Disciplines, Th inking, Science and Power.
Viačaslaŭ Babrovič (Viachaslau Babrovich). Belarusian Intellectuals – Unloved “Child” in Patriarchal “Family” Th e text offers a brief description of relations of Belarusian intellectuals with authorities in modern Belarus. It considers the way intellectuals are engaged in politics, what authorities offer and what demand from intellectual community, which roles they receive in society and how intellectuals accept these roles. Th e author uses analogy with patriarchal family where intellectuals have the role of an “unloved child”.
Keywords: Intellectual Situation, Belarusian Intellectuals, Science and Power, Patriarchal Family, Paternalism.
Aliaksandr Sarna. “Double Agent”: Intellectual at State Service Th e text presents a scheme of combination of social roles – an erudite, an expert, an intellectual. It considers a complicated system of relations of erudites, experts and intellectuals with authorities, society and knowledge. Main strategies and models of behaviour in modern intellectual field of Belarus are described.
Keywords: Erudite, Expert, Intellectual, Knowledge and Power, Consumption of Knowledge.
14 № 21 (2) 2013 Reviews (Political Science) Vadzim Smok. Th e Science of Authoritarianism Justification. Katliaroŭ, Ihar and Vieruš, Alla (2010). Public Administration and Political Leadership: Social and Political Analysis Th e review examines a monograph written by the director of Institute of Sociology of Belarusian Academy of Sciences Ihar Katliaroŭ and docent of Public Administrtaion Academy Alla Vieruš. It reveals the lack of scientific substance in the work and its orientation towards academic justification of the legitimacy of current political regime in Belarus.
Keywords: Authoritarianism, Public Administration, Ideology, Modern History of Belarus, Political Leadership.
Aliaksandr Paharely. A Perpetual Borderland. Savchenko, Andrew (2009). Belarus – A Perpetual Borderland Th e review analyses a work of American researcher of Belarusian origin, who considers Belarus as a country which appeared on the borderland of western and eastern civilisations.
Th e reviewer gives a critical overview of the main author's points and reveals the main problems of representation of Belarus in the English language literature.
Keywords: Belarusian Nation, Belarus, Borderland, Civilisational Approach, Cultural Divide.
Vadzim Bylina. Desovietisation as Political Project. Desovietisation in the Context of Transformation of Belarusian Society (2012) Th e review considers a collection of articles which appeared as a result of study conducted by the Centre for European Transformation in 2012. The study examined the process of desovietisation in various fields of life of Belarus: labour and employment, business, culture of celebration etc.
Keywords: the Soviet, Desovietisation, Identity, Ideology, Public Policy, Culture of Celebration.
Reviews (Social Sciences) Aliaksej Lastoŭski (Aliaksei Lastouski). Th e Persistent Ruins of Marxism. After Soviet Marxism: History, Philosophy, Sociology and Psychoanalysis in National Contexts (Belarus, Ukraine) (2013) Th e review examines a collective study of the state of social and humanitarian disciplines in Belarus and Ukraine after 1991. The work became pioneering as it considered problematic and ignored issues of theoretical and methodological orientation of social and humanitarian disciplines. However, the study has quite a lot of drawbacks and the review attempts to fill these gaps in dialogical form.
15 № 21 (2) 2013 Keywords: Social and Humanitarian Disciplines, Methodology, Academic Schools, Discourse Analysis.
Aliena Aharelyšava (Alena Aharelyshava). Image and Medium: between Science and Show. Sarna, Aliaksandr (2012). Image and Medium: Visual Text in Mass Communication: a Collection of Articles Th e review considers a collection of articles published from 2000 to 2011, which analyse the place and role of visual images in the system of modern mass-media.
Keywords: Visual Representation, Visual Images, Internet, Cinema, Mass-media, Television.
Reviews (History) Siarhej Astankovič (Siarhei Astankovich). Anthology of Political Thought of the Successful Neighbour. Lithuanian Political Thought, the End of the 19th – the Beginning of the 20th Centuries (2013) Th e review considers the anthology of Lithuanian political thought of the end of the 19th – beginning of the 20th centuries. The anthology compiles translations of the works of the most significant initiators of Lithuanian national movement into Belarusian language.
Keywords: Lithuanian National Movement, Lithuania, National Renaissance, History of the End of the 19th – Beginning of the 20th Centuries, Nation-Building.
Siarhej Kuzniacoŭ (Siarhei Kuzniatsou). “Th e Sloe of Kresy” through the Eyes of “Koroniarz” . Chmielewska, Gizela (2010). Cierń Kresowy. Opowieść o Edwardzie Woyniłłowiczu i jego rodzinie Th e review of the book of Polish researcher Gizela Chmielewska, which tells about Belarusian and Polish public figure Edward Vajnilovič and history of his family. Along with familiar information the work provides some sources earlier unknown – private letters of Vajnilovič, correspondence among the relatives, family photos and documents.
Keywords: Edward Vajnilovič, Belarusian-Polish Relations, Elite of Belarus of the Beginning of 20th Century, Kraj Idea Followers, Biography.
Aliaksandr Paharely. Mental Map of the “Stranger”: “East” through the German Lenses. Liulevicius, Vejas Gabriel (2009). The German Myth of the East. 1800 to the Present Th e review considers a monograph of a well-known American researcher which analyses German myths and stereotypes of Eastern Europe (from the Volga to the Baltic Sea and the Balkans) and its nations from 1800 to present days. The review analyses general positions of the author on the subject and suggests certain critical points.
16 № 21 (2) 2013 Keywords: Eastern Europe, Germany, German Nationalism, National Stereotypes, National Myths.
Anatol Vialiki. Western View of Belarusianisation. Marková, Alena (2012).
Sovětská bělorusizace jako cesta k národu: iluze nebo realita?
Th e review of a book of Czech researcher of Belarusian origin, which seeks the reasons of the failure of attempts to create a modern Belarusian nation throught the analysis of Belarusianisation process of the 1920s.
Keywords: Belarusianisation, BSSR, History of Belarus of the Beginning of the 20th Century, Nation-Building, National Policy.