Religious and moral discourse of F.M. Dostoevsky and the tale of our time by M.M. Prishvin

Abstract

This study is aimed at analyzing the historical and cultural contexts of the Russian and Soviet writer Mikhail Mikhailovich Prishvin’s (1873-1954) views on the possibility of realizing the ideal of charity as a theological virtue in Soviet society even in the conditions of militant atheism and the cruelties of the ongoing Great Patriotic War. The study is relevant for modern-day Russia due to the historical circumstances, that from 1917 to the early 1990s, almost the entire cu ltural life of the country came under the pressure of communist ideology. Historical and philosophical reconstruction serves as the main study approaches to this problem. Comparing Dostoevsky’s and Prishvin’s ideological and aesthetic assessments of the revolutionary movement, we establish the metatext, whose analysis allows us to better understand how Prishvin comprehended the basic laws and trends of the development of social existence and consciousness in his time. The paper shows that the main reason for Prishvin’s attraction to Dostoevsky is the closeness of their views on life and recognition of the supremacy of the moral laws in the structure of human existence. The novelty of this study lies in the analysis of the philosophical and ideological context of Prishvin’s thoughts on ways to overcome the spiritual discord in Russian society as the Orthodox Christian worldview held by a significant segment of the population came into conflict with the ideology of Bolshevism. Through his fictional heroes, the writer shows that in the year of the fascist invasion, life itself demonstrated the triumph of the Orthodox faith, to which the Russian people remained faithful despite the pressure of the menacing atheistic state. The story seems to sum up Prishvin’s life journey as the writer’s religious views became increasingly important to his worldview.