Socio-political Aspect Research Articles

From the History of Soviet-French Literary Relations in the 1930s: An Unknown Letter from French Writers to A. M. Gorky about V. Serge (Based on Materials from the A. M. Gorky Archive)

The article examines Soviet-French literary contacts in the socio-political aspect on the basis of two unknown and not introduced into scientific circulation letters from the Archive of A.M. Gorky: a letter of five French writers dated June 28, 1932 A.M. Gorky and a letter from V. Serge dated September 28, 1932 to Gorky’s secretary P.P. Kryuchkov. French writers of leftist views (J.-R. Bloch, C. Vildrac, J. Guéhenno, L. Werth, F. Jourdain), who sympathized with the USSR, turned to Gorky with a request to help Serge leave the USSR. A month later, V. Serge himself turned to Kryuchkov with a request to respond to this letter. The son of Narodnaya Volya emigrants, Serge came to Soviet Russia in 1919 to participate in the revolutionary transformations of society and promote the world revolution. Sergeʼs connections with the anti-Stalinist opposition led to persecution by the GPU, two arrests (in 1928 and 1932) and exile to Orenburg for three years (in 1933). Thanks to an international campaign in the French and Belgian press launched by left-wing intellectuals, Serge left the USSR in April 1936. The still unknown first letter in his defense, sent by French writers to Gorky, is the most important evidence of the political strategies of leftist writers of the 1930s, attempts to influence socio-political processes within the leftist movement, as well as attempts to humanize the Stalinist regime.

A Socio-Political Aspect of Housing and Communal Sanitation in the USSR, 1950s–1960s (Based on Materials of Leningrad and Vyborg)

Introduction. The article examines the interactions between the sanitary service, other departments, and city residents in the 1950s and 1960s to improve sanitary conditions, using the examples of Leningrad and Vyborg. It shows how the level of housing safety increased as the state allocated material resources to service organizations and improved sanitary standards. Methods and materials. The article is based on materials from the State Archive of the Russian Federation, the Central City Archive of St. Petersburg, and the Leningrad Oblast Archive, and a number of newspaper publications. Minutes of meetings, reports and explanatory notes, and citizens’ appeals to various authorities show that littered exits, uncollected cesspools, irregular cleaning of adjoining territories, and mountains of garbage often became a source of epidemics. Analysis. These problems were addressed as communication between government agencies and the public evolved. The legislative framework governing sanitary safety in cities was formed as early as the 1930s. The situation was aggravated by the lack of education of the population, which did not want to comply with sanitary rules. Solving the problem required concerted work by authorities, academics, and community activists. In order to reduce the risks of disease for city residents, city authorities organized trash pickups, lectures for citizens with representatives of sanitation services, etc. Thus, practices were formed to maintain compliance with the necessary norms. Results. The identified features of the implementation of housing and communal sanitation norms give the idea that established communication between government and public organizations was a channel for reducing the risks of epidemics and the comfort of the dwelling. Increased use of specialized machinery that allowed for garbage collection and a number of other problems was able to accelerate sanitation problems. This article illustrates how the risks – the high likelihood of epidemics – forced the state and citizens to seek effective ways to develop and maintain sanitary standards. The successful development of practices was thus related to the development of the necessary infrastructure and the awareness of city residents of the benefits of complying with practices.

The Shepherd-King Metaphor in the Light of Interdisciplinary Research

RESEARCH OBJECTIVE: The aim of the article is to analyze the sources of the shepherd-king metaphor, mainly from the perspective of social-political ideas, within a broad cultural and intellectual context. THE RESEARCH PROBLEM AND METHODS: The article focuses on identifying the intellectual sources of the shepherd-king metaphor in antiquity, their anthropological and cosmological context, and the metaphor’s fundamental message. Particular emphasis is placed on the socio-political aspect; thus, analyses of strictly theological significance are left aside. To achieve the research objective, the author makes use of interdisciplinary instruments, referring to archaeological, biological, and historical knowledge and especially to analyses from the field of the history of ideas. THE PROCESS OF ARGUMENTATION: The article’s line of argument reflects the fundamental problems that need to be solved in order to determine the essence and shape of the shepherd-king metaphor. Therefore, the issues analyzed include animal domestication; ancient anthropology understood as the divine domestication of humans; and the distinctions drawn in ancient thought between the essence of the nature of animals, humans, rulers, and gods. RESEARCH RESULTS: As a result of the analyses indicated above, it was possible to capture the main components of the shepherd-king metaphor, their structure and essence, as well as their direct reference to, and significance for both anthropology and socio-political thought. CONCLUSIONS, INNOVATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The article highlights the importance of the shepherd-king metaphor to the history of political ideas, outlining the impact of both its explicit theses and its more implicit, but no less important, elements. Attention was also drawn to the need for further research, which would enable the metaphor’s socio-political aspects analyzed in this article to be combined into one coherent interpretation with the religious and theological aspects.

Modern Iranian fiction in the Soviet Union: Translation and representation

During the Soviet era, the works of 55 contemporary Iranian authors were translated into Russian and published in the Soviet Union. Prefaces and afterwords, usually written by Iran scholars, provided the Soviet reading audience with a paradigm for perceiving the translated novels and short stories. This paper aims to offer an analytical survey of the history of the translation of modern Iranian fiction into Russian and to trace the major trends in the representation of the translated works. The thematic range of translated works correlated with the domestic political agenda and the changes in Soviet-Iranian relations, as well as with the current state of Soviet Iranian Studies. The influence of personal tastes and connections of certain Iran scholars engaged in the process of translation can also be detected. Generally, the translations of contemporary literature of Iran were to demonstrate that Iranian intellectuals were aware of the flaws of their society, and eager to choose the more humanistic values of the socialist countries. Before World War II, the translators were mainly interested in the socio-political aspect of the works. After the war and before the thaw in Soviet-Iranian relations, translators focused mainly on social satire. In the 1960s – early 1980s, many works of the most prominent Iranian writers of the period were translated into Russian. In the early 1980s, these translations were viewed as a means of understanding the reasons for the Iranian upheaval. The novels and short stories of Iranian modernists, as well as other ideologically inappropriate works, remained untranslated.

Socio-Political Aspect of Activity of the Shevchenko Scientific Society (Late of the Nineteenth - First Third of the Twentieth Centuries)

Socio-Political Aspect of Activity of the Shevchenko Scientific Society (Late of the Nineteenth - First Third of the Twentieth Centuries)

Transforming the European Union's phosphorus governance through holistic and intersectoral framings

This review paper presents a critical perspective on the transformation of phosphorus governance in the European Union to support food and environmental security, which are subject to systemic shocks. It presents three major limitations that act as constraints to this process: (1) the predominance of technical studies, which produce isolated meanings that fail to address the socio-political aspect of phosphorus management and cannot be translated into policy foresight; (2) approaches to change dominated by the linear resource efficiency paradigm narrowly confined within sectoral responses to system shocks; and (3) the constrained policy understanding of the circular economy, which hampers system change as phosphorus reuse is seen primarily as part of the biological cycle of the circular economy and does not advance critical perspectives. We argue that the siloed and heavy regulatory load related to phosphorus produces technocratic and incremental policy revisions, singular state-level approaches and reductionist prisms that exclude extraterritoriality. These exacerbate the inability of institutions to translate technical studies into policy foresight and counter the pervasiveness of linearity. Phosphorus requires instead a holistic and intersectoral governance object that is integrated with the multiple transition instruments on the policy-making agenda of the European Union. To achieve phosphorus sustainability and avoid the dependence on shocks for its self-renewal, phosphorus governance needs to overcome the technocratic incrementalism of individual sectors and adapt to alternative discursive framings that transcend the existing compartmentalization of its meanings. This would require disentangling phosphorus as a contested arena of controversial stakeholder priorities and selectively amplifying the discursive framings that can politicize and enhance its ubiquitous importance. While phosphorus has its unique properties, such an approach can be of relevance to other elements.

"Brain Drain": dynamics and state management mechanisms of countermeasures in the conditions of European integration of Ukraine

Study of the peculiarities of the "brain drain" in the conditions of a full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine, as well as consideration and formation of management decisions regarding potential re-emigration policy, especially in the context of the academic community (teachers and scientists). The key methodological basis was the interdisciplinary approach, which made it possible to apply the work of both political scientists and state managers, as well as economists, sociologists, and psychologists, to the given problem. Dialectical and comparative methods were also important, which made it possible to reveal the contradictions and specifics of the implementation of the state policy of preventing "brain drain" and "brain gain". The authors considered data from sociological surveys, as well as statistical data published by the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, which made it possible to identify a kind of regularity – in both cases, approximately 10% of scientists/teachers were outside the borders of our country. Considering the project of the state policy of "brain growth" (more precisely, re-emigration), it was established that recommendations in this context should be formulated not only for the donor country itself but also for migrants, the recipient country, and international organizations. Using the work of not only specialists in public management and administration but also related humanities – sociology, psychology, and philosophy, makes it possible to reveal the problem of "brain drain" in our country in a multilevel and comprehensive way, thereby seeing in this problem not only a purely sociopolitical aspect but also personal and existential. Management challenges related to this issue are not only in the formation of re-emigration policy but also in preventing (or at least minimizing) academic migration in the future, which should be based on such key points as social partnership and tolerance.

Agrarianist content of P. Skoropadskyi’s agrarian reform

The aim of the research – the authors of the article aim to gain new knowledge about the agrarianist content of the agrarian policy of Ukrainian State. The research method- ology is based on the principles of objectivity, historicism, and systematicity. The authors used universal scientifi c research methods: analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction. In the study of the topic, the authors used such special-historical and interdisciplinary methods as historical- comparative, historical-genetic. Th e scientifi c novelty is that it is substantiated that there are suffi cient reasons to consider the hetman’s agrarian policy as having an agrarianist character and corresponding to the principles of Eastern European agrarianism at that time. Conclusions. Th e agrarian policy of Ukrainian State had an agrarianist character, given that it corresponded to the basic principles of agrarianism. Firstly, the hetman and the political parties that supported him understood the peasantry as an active subject of history, as the social basis of the state. Th ey also had a corresponding attitude towards the peasantry, which is refl ected in legislation and agrarian policy. Secondly, agrarian policy was widely understood by the head of Ukrainian State and the political parties that supported him, as a component of domestic economic policy, containing socio-economic and socio-political components. Th e socio-economic part is the im- plementation of land reform and the settlement of current agricultural issues: improvement of land management, improvement of agrotechnical cultivation of land, provision of peasant farms with agricultural equipment, seed stock, working cattle, etc. Socio-political aspect – forms and methods of cooperation between authorities and the peasantry, subjectivization of the peasantry in the current political and legal model of the state. Th irdly, P. Skoropadskyi was looking for an alternative path, not a monarchical one, not a socialist one, he was a supporter of an innova- tive model of agricultural development. In his understanding – highly cultured peasant farms. Fourthly, for him, the instrument of subjectivization of the peasantry – the social basis of the state – was private peasant ownership of land. Th e latter was considered the foundation of cul- ture and civilization, the inviolable principle of the state’s existence. Entitlement of peasants to private ownership of land and signifi cant limitation of large land ownership is the cornerstone of P. Skoropadskyi’s agrarian reform.

Socio-political evaluation of renewable energy resources under uncertain environment

Countries are developing green transition policies to reduce their dependency on conventional resources and to eliminate environmental concerns while meeting increasing energy demand. Renewable energy, thus, has a crucial effect on accomplishing these policies. To ensure a rapid spread of renewable energy and develop resilient renewable energy policies concerning the evaluation of renewable energy resources, socio-political factors should be considered. However, evaluating renewable energy technologies regarding the socio-political aspect is clearly more difficult and uncertain than a study focused only on quantifiable objectives, but it is critical since real projects are affected by such aspects. Multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) techniques are best for addressing such issues with conflicting objectives. In this study, an integrated AHP-TOPSIS method with Pythagorean fuzzy sets (PFSs) was used to create the socio-political index for evaluating renewable energy hybrid technologies and Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESSs) in Turkey. The results showed that while solar energy has the highest socio-political index, Run of River with BESSs alternative ranks as the lowest.

Political Ecology Perspective: Analysis of Deforestation

This paper aims to analyze deforestation in Banjar Regency, South of Kalimantan based on a Political Ecology Perspective. The background of the research is that environmental damage is an implication of the socio-political aspect, namely that environmental change is not neutral, but is a form of environment politicization that involves many actors at the local, regional, and global levels. Through this justification, changes in the forest environment in Banjar Regency are relevant for research. The research method used is descriptive qualitative. The research results show that deforestation in Banjar Regency is a condition that does not occur due to natural phenomena, but is caused by socio-political factors and involves various actors with various interests. These actors include community groups who are resistant to government policies, environmental groups that have political participation in environmental issues, oligarchic groups who are close to the authorities, and the government itself which has an economic interest orientation in managing the forest environment. Political system back and forth between input and output. Based on the results of existing research, the uniqueness that can be found is that the community is not only an actor affected by the environmental change but also an environmental change actor, besides that the environmental care groups in their political demands are the presence of a religiosity approach in forest management.

OVERCOMING EUROPEAN NIHILISM IN THE TEACHINGS OF FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE IN THE CONTEXT OF THE DEVELOPMENT OF NON-CLASSICAL PHILOSOPHY

The subject of the study is Friedrich Nietzsche’s concept of nihilism as an integral part of his socio-philosophical views.The relevance of addressing the concept of nihilism in the context of Friedrich Nietzsche’s reflections on society is due to the fact that, in the philosopher’s view, nihilism is the main concept for substantiating the idea of the crisis nature of modern Western civilization. It is because of nihilism, Friedrich Nietzsche believed, that Western society in the historical perspective is doomed to decline and death.So, Friedrich Nietzsche’s critical approach to the problems of society is conceptual in nature, in a historical-philosophical sense, Nietzschean criticism contributed to the formation of the problem of the formation of a mass society and the idea of a crisis of Western culture in Western philosophical and social thought.In accordance with the purpose of the research, the article analyzes the Nietzschean criticism of society in the context of the reception and reflection of this criticism in the thoughts of famous representatives of non-classical philosophy, which is important for the formation of the modern discourse of Western culture.The paper analyzes the concept of nihilism as a prerequisite for Friedrich Nietzsche’s negative attitude towards the development prospects of Western society. The close connection between the idea of nihilism and rationalism is noted, it is rationalism, according to the philosopher, that is a prerequisite for the moral decline of society.It is emphasized that Friedrich Nietzsche’s fundamental criticism of rationalism at the level of general philosophical ideas has certain deviations when the philosopher considers specific socio-political processes.It is concluded that it is precisely in the socio-political aspect in the views of Friedrich Nietzsche that the complexity of the relationship between the concepts of rational and irrational is most characteristically manifested. This complexity actually goes beyond purely Nietzschean philosophy and becomes a subject of reflection for many representatives of non-classical philosophy.The article, based on the statements of a number of researchers of the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche, proves the opinion that the philosopher’s anti-irrationalism can be understood in a constructive way, as a supplement and deepening of modern ideas about the nature of the rational, and not always the positive influence of the rational on man and society.Thus, the philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche acts as a prerequisite for the further deepening of ideas in Western culture about the contradictory nature of society in which rational and irrational elements are inextricably intertwined.

Reinterpreting Buddhist Environmental Ethics Through the Lens of Agential Realism

Reinterpreting Buddhist Environmental Ethics Through the Lens of Agential Realism

The Biopolitics of Nourishing Life

In this paper, I argue that nourishing life (yangsheng 養生) as a self-cultivating practice stands as an alternative model of biopolitics that challenges the neoliberal one. Existing scholarship on nourishing life focuses much on its ethical significance, for instance, as an effective way to lead a long life, whereas Nelson’s most recent monograph Daoism as Environmental Philosophy: Nourishing Life provides new insights into the socio-political aspect of it, in terms of an ecological way of government. However, Nelson’s discussion of biopolitics rarely engages with the Seven Sages in the Bamboo Forest (zhulin qixian 竹林七賢) that nonetheless practice nourishing life themselves, as an art of living and a political strategy. Focused on nourishing life in Ji Kang as one of the Sages, I situate my position against Jullien’s claim that the self-cultivating sage is uncritical due to his incapacity to think of conflict in the face of power. And in the context of his book I also highlight Heubel’s negligence of the neoliberal political economy underlying Foucauldian biopolitics in the context of his intercultural study of nourishing life as a possible model of biopolitics. As such, based on Nelson’s consideration of the non-coercive ethos and praxis of Dao, I propose a biopolitics of nourishing life as opposed to the neoliberal “environmental technology” that normalizes materialist lifestyle and attitudes, the production of freedom as commodity.

Critical Review on Community-Shared Solar—Advantages, Challenges, and Future Directions

In the last few years, many innovative solutions have been presented to address the climate change crisis. One of the innovative solutions is the participation of community members in the collective production of solar electricity instead of individual production. The current study aims to provide a critical literature review of the collective production of solar electricity, which is called “community-shared solar” (CSS). Sixty-seven peer-reviewed publications were selected based on the setting up of a combination of related keywords. To analyze the concept of CSS in the existing literature, a multi-level perspective (MLP) framework was used to observe the CSS innovation at the niche, regime, and landscape levels. Four aspects, including the technical, economic, socio-political, and regulatory and institutional, were considered to evaluate those three levels. The results revealed that in the technical and economic aspects, CSS has reached maturity and internal momentum that can take it to the next levels. However, a lack of attention to the socio-political aspect and the regulatory and institutional aspect, in particular, is the potential barrier to the emergence of CSS and its potential position as a leading energy system.

A. Arbuzov's play "My Poor Marat" on the modern Chinese stage: the problem of reception

The author examines in detail the reception of Arbuzov's play "My Poor Marat" on the Chinese stage since 2000, analyzes the opinions of critics and audience reactions, as well as other types of responses to this dramatic text in modern Chinese culture. The problem of perception of the Russian dramaturgy of the twentieth century in China is raised on the material of the modern Chinese artistic and critical reception of Alexey Arbuzov's play "My Poor Marat" (1964). The work of Alexey Arbuzov, one of the most sought-after Soviet playwrights on the world stage, is the main subject of research. The play of this playwright "My Poor Marat" has been repeatedly staged in Chinese theaters, and in 2021 it again proved to be in demand by theatrical figures and the audience, which indicates the relevance of this study. The scientific novelty of the research consists in the fact that the work has studied the most popular performances of "My Poor Marat" in China since 2000, as well as an art exhibition based on the play. The practical significance of the results obtained is that their analysis reflects the dynamics of the development of Chinese society, changes in mentality, dominant themes of the time, dialogue with other cultures and various aesthetic systems, the specifics of theatrical life and the theatrical market in the country. The conclusion is made that the stage reception of Russian drama in China is closely connected with the socio-political aspect of the country's life and national mentality, affects the official ideology and individual consciousness, reflects the dialogue of foreign cultural factors and traditional forms of national culture.

Overview of Prominent Sīrah Writings of Modern Period

The tradition of Sīrah writing goes back to the very generation of companions of Prophet Muhammad (SAAS). The very first Sīrah works that appeared distinct from the hadith works, however, did not deal with complete biography of Prophet Muhammad (SAAS), rather they addresses aspects of his socio-political life and organisation of the government during the Medinan period. This aspect of Sīrah writing came to be known in history as Maghazi. Though a bit later when comprehensive biographies of the Prophet Muhammad (SAAS) were compiled al-Maghazi were also incorporated in the Sīrah works, socio-political aspect of the Prophet’s life especially his conduct was entities of his time remained focus of various Sīrah works. A large number Sīrah works have been written by scholars from different perspectives highlighting different dimensions of it both in the past and in the contemporary times. This review article attempts to examine and review the prominent Sīrah works of modern period.

“A Revolution in Labor”: African Americans and Hybrid Labor Activism in Illinois during the Early Jim Crow Era

“A Revolution in Labor”: African Americans and Hybrid Labor Activism in Illinois during the Early Jim Crow Era

Indonesian Policy on Muslim Friendly Tourism: Geopolitical Overview

This article attempts to analyze Indonesia's geopolitical policies in accommodating sharia-based economic and tourism policies. The object of this research is the policy around Muslim-Friendly Tourism (MFT). The tourism sector as one of the largest foreign exchange earners for Indonesia accommodates tourism trends in Muslim-populated countries. This study attempts to analyze the relationship between tourism and Indonesia's international geopolitical policies that involve religious elements, both in macro and micro level. In this study, the researchers found that at the macro level, the government at the national and regional levels provides policies and regulations related to the management and development of MFT. This is driven by phenomena at the micro level related to economic and socio-political aspects. The economic aspect which is dominated by the trend of consumerism of halal products and the socio-political aspect which is dominated by the spirit of Islamic populism in some areas needs to be accommodated by government regulations as a strategy to strengthen the integrity and sovereignty of the nation.

The Refugee, an Anguish of Million

"The partition of India left a dark and ineradicable mark in the history of India, which created painful anguish among millions of people, especially in Bengal and Punjab. The sea change about the independence of India made an inexplicable turn of events in the annals of history. The spirit of brotherhood and the generation of human values collapsed suddenly with the advent of independence in the country. This socio-political aspect touched upon the playwright Asif Currimbhoy in making the play The Refugee. Currimbhoy tried to generate compassion through human suffering in and around Bengal, especially in Calcutta. The present play, The Refugee, draws the parallel between Yassin, the young refugee from East Pakistan, and Sen Gupta, a refugee to India from East Pakistan many years earlier. In the beginning, Yassin is cloudy and undecipherable with his indecisive acts towards the cause. On the other hand, Sen Gupta crossed borders many years earlier as a refugee, and he is now well settled in India with his friendly attitude and hardworking nature. Surprisingly, both are at present unperturbed towards the worsened situation of millions of refugees, who are in the camps and outside of the house of Sen Gupta and who need to be addressed by the concern. This play is about the anguish of millions of refugees. It is an act of resolution of dilemma in irony about the influx of refugees growing in number."

The Problematic of the Imiaslav Disputes in Russian Religious Philosophy: Towards the Question of the Ecclesiastical and Social Ideal in the Discussions of the 1910s

The article examines the influence of the imyaslav disputes on Russian religious and philosophical thought at the beginning of the 20th century. The socio-political aspect of Russian religious philosophy and the problems of relations between the Church, the state and society in the context of the “religious Renaissance” of the Silver Age are touched upon. The author dwells on the positions of two well-known philosophers who actively participated in the polemic around the imyaslav movement, namely N.A. Berdyaev and V.F. Ern. The article traces the similarities and differences in the theses of the two thinkers related to the “Athos affair”, and draws conclusions about the connection between the positions they formulated with the common worldview constants of both philosophers and, in particular, their idea of the ecclesiastical and social ideal.