Slave Mentality and Free Thought in the Philosophy of Nicolai Alexandrovich Berdyaev
Slave Mentality and Free Thought in the Philosophy of Nicolai Alexandrovich Berdyaev
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54855/csl.26617Keywords:
Nicolai Berdyaev, Slave Thinking, Free Thinking, Objectification, Personality (Lichnost)Abstract
This article examines two contrasting modes of thought in the philosophy of Nicolai Alexandrovich Berdyaev: slave mentality and free thought. According to Berdyaev, human beings in the natural world are easily objectified and become dependent on external values such as society, religion, power, the crowd, and even the egoistic self. This condition causes individuals to lose their subjectivity, creativity, and inner freedom. By contrast, free thought belongs to the spiritual world, where human beings return to the depth of the inner self, overcome external impositions, and exist as unique personal beings. The article also discusses the influences of Kant, Schopenhauer, and Boehme, while comparing Berdyaev with Hegel to clarify the metaphysical foundation of freedom. It argues that liberation from slave mentality is a continuous journey toward the realization of freedom, personal dignity, and authentic human existence.
References
Tài liệu chính
Berdyaev, Nicolai. 2017. Con người trong thế giới tinh thần. Traducido por Nguyễn Văn Trọng. Nxb Tri Thức.
Berdyaev, Nicolas. 1951. Dream and Reality - [DR]. Traducido por Katherine Lampert. New York: Macmillan.
—. 1935. Freedom and the Spirit - [FS]. Traducido por Oliver Fielding Clarke. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
—. 1938. Solitude and Society - [SS]. Traducido por George Reavey. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
—. 1939. Spirit and Reality. Traducido por George Reavey. London: Bles.
—. 1952. The Beginning and the End - [BE]. Traducido por R.M. French. New York: Harper.
—. 1945. The Destiny of Man - [DM]. Traducido por Natalie Duddington. London: Bles.
—. 1955. The Meaning of the Creative Act. Traducido por Donald A. Lowrie. New York: Harper.
—. 1953. Truth and Revelation - [TR]. Traducido por R.M. French. New York: Harper.
Tài liệu khác
1. Vincent J. McNamara, (1960). Some basic notions of the Personalism of Nicolai Berdyaev. Volume 16, Numéro 2, 1960, p. 278–302. University Laval.
2. James Wayne Dye. Nikolai Berdyaev and his ideas on the fundamental nature of all entities. Northern Illinois University.
3. Raul-Ovidiu Bodea, (2019). Nikolai Berdyaev’s dialectics of freedom: in search for spiritual freedom. Article in Open Theology.
4. Susan Radcliff Nichols, (1954). Berdyaev’s social Philosophy in the light of his concept of freedom. Boston University.
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