Dostoevsky's Political Thought

Recognized as one of the greatest novelists of all-time, Fyodor Dostoevsky continues to inspire and instigate questions about religion, philosophy, and literature. However, there has been a neglect looking at his political thought: its philosophical and religious foundations, its role in nineteenth-century Europe, and its relevance for us today.Dostoevsky’s Political Thought explores Dostoevsky’s political thought in his fictional and nonfictional works with contributions from scholars of political science, philosophy, history, and Russian Studies. From a variety of perspectives, these scholars contribute to a greater understanding of Dostoevsky not only as a political thinker but also as a writer, philosopher, and religious thinker.

“This collection explores a series of contentions that Dostoevsky expounded primarily in his novels beginning with Crime and Punishment and concluding with The Brothers Karamazov.”

The Russian Review
[T]he volume’s invitation to explore the political dimension of Dostoevskii’s thought deserves to be taken seriously. Slavic Review
Nearly every reader of Dostoevsky knows the profundity of his portrayals of evil, utilitarianism, freedom, servility, humility, humiliation, rebellion, God, and love. Yet few scholars as the ones assembled by Lee Trepanier and Richard Avramenko have seen the political significance of these portrayals with such acuity. Rarer still is it to find such an exhaustive scope of his writings scrutinized for their political teachings. Leo Strauss once claimed that modern readers are fortunate if they have a natural preference for Jane Austen over Dostoevsky. The contributors to this volume demonstrate why modern readers are fortunate if they do read Dostoevsky carefully. These contributors show us why Dostoevsky is one of the most profound guides to the human condition in the modern age, and in any age. -- John von Heyking, University of Lethbridge
Combining two classic articles with a number of new ones, this volume makes a powerful case for seeing Dostoevsky as a thinker who gives form and substance to the discontents of our present age of global liberal consensus. For anyone ever captivated by Dostoevsky’s knowledge of the human soul, these essays provide provocative reflections on the social and political implications of his insight. They offer an illuminating picture of the contemporary appreciation of Dostoevsky as an artist committed to unraveling the mystery of human experience. -- Joseph Alulis, North Park University

Richard Avramenko is associate professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin. He is the author of Courage: the Politics of Life and Limb, the coeditor of Friendship and Politics: Essays in Political Thought, and author of numerous articles on ancient and continental political thought in literature.Lee Trepanier is an associate professor of political science at Saginaw Valley State University. He is author of Russian Political Symbols, co-author with Lynita K. Newswander of LDS in USA: Mormonism and the Making of American Culture, and editor and co-editor of several volumes, the latest being Teaching in an Age of Ideology (co-edited with John von Heyking), Eric Voegelin and the Modern Continental Tradition (co-edited with Steven McGuire), and Cosmopolitanism in the Age of Globalization (co-edited with Khalil Habib).

Recognized as one of the greatest novelists of all-time, Fyodor Dostoevsky continues to inspire and instigate questions about religion, philosophy, and literature. However, there has been a neglect looking at his political thought: its philosophical and religious foundations, its role in nineteenth-century Europe, and its relevance for us today. Dostoevsky's Political Thought explores Dostoevsky's political thought in his fictional and nonfictional works with contributions from scholars of political science, philosophy, history, and Russian Studies. From a variety of perspectives, these scholars contribute to a greater understanding of Dostoevsky not only as a political thinker but also as a writer, philosopher, and religious thinker.

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