The purpose of this text is the comparison of the interpretations of Carl Schmitt’s thought in Poland and worldwide. Polish literature on Schmitt is very modest: two large monographs and some scientific articles. It focuses on the problem of the theory of the state and politics. At the same time, the world literature is very abundant. Schmitt is a thinker concerned with many topics. He wrote about many problems. For a long time there has been a tendency to look for the interpretive key to use in order to find a central theme of his reflections and then read the rest of his works through this perspective. Researchers identify these central themes as: a critique of liberalism, political theology, favorability towards Nazism, political opportunism. This text shows four major worldwide interpretations and their reflection in the Polish-language literature.
This essay attempts to contextualise the purported novelty of Alexis de Tocqueville’s particular brand of liberalism. It regards the author not as an heir or precursor to any given political tradition, but rather as a compelled syncretist whose primary philosophical concern was the moral significance of the democratic age. It suggests that Tocqueville devised his ‘new political science’ with a keen view to the existential implications of modernity. In order to support that suggestion, the essay explores the genealogy of Tocqueville’s moral and political thought and draws a relation between his analysis of democracy and his personal experience of modernity.
The author outlines the argument he pursued in the last two decades of the 20th century, while working at British and American universities. In scholarly discourse of the time, the notion of totalitarianism was already abandoned in political science in general, and in sovietology in particular. Rejecting this commonly dominated position, the author assumed that the totalitarian project constituted the most radical opposition to the liberal one. Accordingly, he adopted the critical apparatus of classical liberalism, especially that of methodological individualism, to analyze totalitarianism. Above all, he used the categories of John Locke’s political thought, such as the state of nature, social contract, and especially that of civil society, as the key to understand the phenomenon of the explosion as well as implosion of totalitarianism. In fact, he assumed that the presence of civil society constituted the essence of liberal experience and its absence indicated the essence of totalitarian experience. In this interpretation, the chronological and conceptual point of departure was the state of affairs in Russia as well as in Central and Eastern Europe before the communist takeover. What dominated there could be considered a three-way social and political relationship of the individual, society and the state. The individuals constituted various associations, such as political parties, business corporations, trade unions, religious, scientific, artistic organizations or sports clubs which formed the ranks of civil society. They usually pursued different pluralistic visions of common good while influencing state policies. After the communist takeover, these three-way relationships were replaced by the two-way relationships of the individual and the Center. The latter consisted of the Communist party as well as state leadership and combined three mutually interacting branches: the political (control of the police and army), the economic (planning and control of economic activity and distribution), and the ideological (imposition of the offi cially established ideology and control of the channels of mass communication). The Center destroyed the ranks of civil society and exposed the individual to its three dimensional power causing a true atomization of society. This state of affairs lasted until the emergence of dissident groups which restored pockets of civil society and deprived the Center of the ideological power over their members. The next step towards the restoration of civil society in the region was the appearance of mass vindication movements such as Solidarity in Poland in 1980, Popular Fronts in numerous Soviet Republics in 1988–1989, and in Czechoslovakia, East Germany and Bulgaria in 1989. The nationwide dimensions of these initiatives finally deprived the Center of its ideological power over the greatest part of population and considerably weakened the other two branches of its power — the economic and political ones. The political power of the Center was defi nitely challenged when these movements divided themselves along political lines and independent political parties emerged. The agenda of these parties was to compete with the Communists for political power in open and competitive elections. The final restoration of civil society took place when these parties managed to implement their agendas. When they did take political power the dissolution of the Center followed. The two-way social and political relations of the individual and the Center were defi nitely abolished and three-way ones of the individual, society and the state reemerged. The author admits that this interpretation had both methodological strengths and weaknesses. Yet, he argues that its main achievement was to indicate the fundamental conflict between the dynamics of the Center and the dynamics of civil society. The explosion of the totalitarian system caused by the Center led to the total annihilation of civil society. In turn, the implosion of the totalitarian system was the result of the reemergence of civil society which finally eliminated the Center.
The article analyses two main economic trends (liberalism and keynesism) in the context of possible theoretical and practical answers they can give to questions related to the essence and causes of economic crises and counteraction against them. The author shows a significant connection between the appearance of global crises and domination of liberal thinking among economic theoreticians, practitioners and politicians. This connection is illustrated by historical examples of economic crises. The author also presents the reasons for crises (usually liberal thinking) and ways of counteraction against them (indicating that the keynesism recipes are the most effective). Finally, the author states that in present political conditions, Polish economy is unlikely to quickly and successfully oppose the dangers resulting from the existence of crises phenomena as there is a fundamental ideological obstacle, which is liberal government, rejecting all keynesism recipes for an economic crisis.
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The article focuses on political thinking in the 18th century Russia, which preceded the 19th and 20th century Russian liberalism. It is divided into two sections. The first sections focuses on certain difficulties connected with clarification of the term Russian liberalism (or more precisely liberalism in Russia) and the course of its existing research, i.e. the heterogeneous periodicity of Russian liberalism, the problematic specification of the term 'liberal' in the Russian milieu and the fluctuation of liberalism in Russia from positive to pejorative nuances. The second section pursues viewpoints of political thinkers and the development of public political life in the 18th century Russia, which was followed by Russian liberalism in the 19th and 20th century. The author pays attention to political ideas and standpoints of I. T. Pososhkov, D. M. Golicyn and V. N. Tatishchev and their attempts to weaken the tsarist power in 1730. He analyses the rise and advance of public movement and West European political thinkers' influence on the Russian political activity in the second half of the 18th century. Next, he analyses constitutionals projects of N. I. Panin, P. I. Panin and D. I. Fonvizin and ideas of S. J. Desnickij and A. N. Radishchev.
The essay shows that some political views from the times of Athenian democracy are acceptable even today. Although the essence of democracy has changed, its long journey has now entered a dead end street. Liberal democracy, coupled with globalization and the neo-liberal principles of market economy, is now in crisis that needs to be resolved. Maintaining its framework is important; otherwise we risk the rise of illiberal democracies. One way to overcoming this crisis is to revive democracy through various forms of participation, basically active citizenship, which for Aristotle was embodied by a democratic constitution, especially the Athenian one.
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In her article the author contemplates the autobiographical work of the Austrian writer and humanist Stefan Zweig (1881 to 1942) called “The World of Yesterday“, subtitled “The Reminiscences of the European“. Stefan Zweig wrote his autobiography while exiled in Brazil shortly before he committed suicide. On the one hand, Stefan Zweig, direct participant in and witness to two world wars within the “short“ 20th century, describes humanity’s as well as his own generation’s hopes put into the era of liberty and rationality at the background of the disintegration of the Austrian empire. On the other hand, he describes the fall of liberalism and the rise of chauvinistic nationalism (Nazism and antisemitism) associated with the degradation of man and human dignity. The great author’s faith in and desire for the rise of global civic society have been left unfulfilled until the present day.
Theodor Haecker (1879 – 1945) was an influential commentator, translator and promoter of Kierkegaard’s philosophy during the era of the German “Kierkegaard Renaissance.” In 1914 he published the translation of one part of Kierkegaard’s A Literary Review (1846) to which he attached a twenty-five-page-long Afterword. In the Afterword he engaged in a sharp polemic against the contemporary cultural and political liberalism promoted in certain German periodicals. He based his criticism on Kierkegaard’s findings concerning the levelling role of the modern press. Haecker’s translation and commentary create a philosophical continuum that attests to the lasting relevance of Kierkegaard’s thought. They influenced the thinking of a number of German-speaking philosophers, such as K. Jaspers, M. Heidegger, F. Ebner and T. W. Adorno.
The article concerns the idea of multiculturalism and the role of anthropology in the disputes surrounding it. The first part of the article is devoted to the genesis of multiculturalism and the problems which it creates. These problems centre on the question of whether it is possible to combine multiculturalism with the values of western liberal democracy. Does multiculturism allow for openness to that which is foreign and does it permit cultural separatism? Is western liberalism a symptom of ethnocentricism or is it the opposite and it allows us to move beyond it, facilitating a cultural auto-revisions - both cognitive and ethical. The second part is devoted to constructive role played by anthropologists in the discussions taking place concerning multiculturalism. The role of the anthropologists would be to identify the specifics of society and consequently to move from a strictly theoretical point of view to an empiric one. Since political theory is not yet a guarantor of dialogue and multicultural dialogue does not always require a justification of its possibilities or an indication of a reliable way of conducting it. The dialogue rquires the ability to at least partially understand the speaker and the cultural practices - where the protagonist could be anthropology.
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In the Bohemian Lands between the two world wars, G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936) was among the English authors most translated into Czech. Despite his Roman Catholicism, conservative politics (which led him even to sympathize with Mussolini), and his rejection of Modernist culture, in this country Chesterton was for the most part considered a modern writer who appealed to a wide range of readers and writers. Some of these Czech men of letters (Karel Capek, Ferdinand Peroutka, and Miroslav Rutte) advocated pragmatism and liberalism; others (Karel Teige, Bedrich Václavek, and Jan Werich) were members of the avant-garde; few were Roman Catholic (Alfred Fuchs, Dominik Pecka, and Timoteus Vavrinec Vodicka) - the last named of whom wrote a book about Chesterton, which one-sidedly emphasized Chesterton's Neo-Thomist inspiration. Although William James approvingly quoted Chesterton in his book on pragmatism and the Polish literary historian Waclaw Borowy pointed out the links between Chesterton and pragmatism in the 1920s, this sort of interpretation of Chesterton's works was rare outside the Bohemian Lands. By contrast, in this country this interpretation predominated and Chesterton was considered a pragmatist also by authors who rejected him precisely for this reason, usually in debates with Karel Capek, whether the Roman Catholic Jaroslav Durych, the Marxist Zdenek Nejedlý, or F. X. Salda. These authors rejected Chesterton's 'petty-bourgeois qualities', but, paradoxically, it was Chesterton's resistance to liberal democracy (as well as the fantasy quality of his fiction) that attracted Václavek. Peroutka (whom in this context could scarcely be called a liberal) shared Chesterton's distrust of the market economy; whereas Chesterton proposed the redistribution of property to small owners ('distributism'), Peroutka saw socialism as a necessary step towards achieving a more just society (since socialism and conservatism were both opposed to liberalism). For Peroutka Chesterton's Christian-based emphasis on the ordinary man and the fundamental equality of all people was an inspiration. The Czech liberalism of the First Republic (1918-38) is usually, in part justifiably, reproached for its not being 'anchored'. Peroutka's interest in Chesterton's views could therefore have constituted an attempt at a more profound metaphysical anchoring of his own political opinions. This attempt was, however, paradoxical, since Peroutka did not recognize Chesterton's religious starting point.
The study analyses the socio-political discourse about freedom of the press in the Kingdom of Hungary in the context of the 1790-1791 parliament and the work of the commission for public and political affairs on the preparation of legislation on freedom of the press in the period 1791 – 1794. Against the background of Hungarian constitutionalism, it notices the opposition and argumentation of Hungarian county authorities concerning decrees on the closure of private printing presses. It analyses further philosophical, religious and political considerations, in order to point out their context in the philosophy of the European Enlightenment, the concept of the social contract, the French revolution and its liberal ideas. It shows how the concept of the nation and the development of its culture as an expression of Hungarian nationalism were brought into these considerations, and that the intensive debate on freedom of the press and expression had no impact on the growing pressure of censorship as an expression of a weakened political power.
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This study deals with the development of German political liberalism in Moravia from the end of the 1880s until World War I. It throws light on the manifesto and organizational changes connected to the transformation of the previously nationwide Deutschmaehrische Partei in the Deutsche Fortschrittspartei. It devotes much attention to the standing of German Liberals within the system of German political parties in Moravia and to the role of the most influential party personalities (A. Weeber, A. Promber, H. d'Elvert, R. M. Rohrer).
The European politicians from Central Europe use a very strange definition of liberalism. This strange definition leaves out the idea of equal opportunities – one of the two liberal principles. This omission is one of the results brought by the radical liberalism. Radical liberals protect liberty so strongly that they refuse any equality. They are afraid of the propensity to the totalitarianism so they refuse almost all state interventions. Radical liberals forget that an absolute refusing of the equality leads to breaking of one of the liberal principles. Liberty without equal opportunity leads to the same illiberal situation as equality without individual liberty. Both of the liberal principles must be preserved if we want to live in a liberal society. Contemporary liberals should find a solution to unite the liberal principles.
The study analyses the socio-political discourse about freedom of the press in the Kingdom of Hungary in the context of the 1790-1791 parliament and the work of the commission for public and political affairs on the preparation of legislation on freedom of the press in the period 1791–1794. Against the background of Hungarian constitutionalism, it notices the opposition and argumentation of Hungarian county authorities concerning decrees on the closure of private printing presses. It analyses further philosophical, religious and political considerations, in order to point out their context in the philosophy of the European Enlightenment, the concept of the social contract, the French revolution and its liberal ideas. It shows how the concept of the nation and the development of its culture as an expression of Hungarian nationalism were brought into these considerations, and that the intensive debate on freedom of the press and expression had no impact on the growing pressure of censorship as an expression of a weakened political power.
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The article deals with the problem of relationships between those modes. It briefly outlines the historical development of the relationship of papal social teaching and Christian thought to capitalism and liberalism. This relationship is predominantly negative. On the other hand, the article discusses the permanent influence of socialism and Marxism on theology and social thought. The next step is an attempt to clarify the conceptual misunderstanding of the terms liberalism and capitalism. The neoconservative Michael Novak outlines the 'Whig tradition' of catholic thinkers - not seeing the contradiction between the catholic concept of moral life and capitalism supported by the ideology of classical liberalism. Pope John Paul II, based on his social encyclicals, is one of those thinkers.
Artykuł stanowi próbę zbadania charakteru współczesnej ekonomicznej wyobraźni Po- laków. Metodą ankietowego badania reprezentatywnego zrekonstruowane zostały ogólne (złożone) zespoły wyobrażeń na temat czynników korzystnych dla gospodarki jako całości, poszczególnych przedsiębiorstw oraz ludzi. Zbadane zostały determinanty poglądów tworzą- cych ogólniejsze wyobrażenia na ten temat, a także ich wpływ na stopień akceptacji demo- kracji.
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The paper attempts at investigation of contemporary economic imagination of the Poles. Representative survey data have been used to reconstruct general (composite) dimensions of imaginations of the factors beneficial to economic success on the levels of national economy, individual enterprises and people. The determinants of these imaginations on the one hand and their impact on attitudes to democracy on the other have been measured and discussed.
In the text, I attempt to question the justifiability of Erich Fromm’s distinction: “to have or to be?”. In practice, the phrase is used in various contexts and discussions and is not associated with the ideas of its author. The catchphrase’s popularity comes from the fact that it managed to express the attainments of many centuries of religion and philosophy, which may be defined as axiology branding devotion to material things. The axiology is usually adopted as unquestionable. My thesis is that axiology is, in fact, a debatable evaluation. I present my own views and those of Bronisław Łagowski, which he presented in his paper Palę Fromma (I burn Fromm). I also cite real cases of negation and affirmation of private property. I discuss the negation of property made by Plato and its critique undertaken by Aristotle. I analyse the affirmations of private property which are the strongest in West European culture – liberal thought and libertarianism. I think that one should develop and form one’s mind so as to relieve oneself from the devotion to things. It does not, however, have to be achieved through the fight with and negation of the phenomena required for subsistence. Things are not negative in themselves. The desire and drive to possess material things may be perceived as a valuable phenomenon – both from an economic and a moral point of view. The community needs people who are responsible, resourceful and well-off, which means people who have something to lose. In this text, I am mostly interested in the “transposition” of the adopted metaphysical assumptions in the practice of social life.
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