Throughout the history of Russia, as a tsarist state, and in the period of the empire, there were both adherents of the ruler's policy and its opponents. The 18th century is the peak of the intensity of passions and the growing discontent of the population. Mass terror, inhuman treatment of the peasants, enslaving serfdom, arrogance and unpunished cruelty of the landowners - all this has not been stopped by anyone for a long time.
In Europe, the dissatisfaction of the population with the insignificant attitude of the ruling class towards the lower strata of society also increased. The imperfection of the state system led to uprisings, revolutions and turning points in European countries. Russia has not bypassed such a fate. The coups took place with the help of the vigorous activity of domestic fighters for freedom and equality, contrary to state charters.
Who are they?
French activists, in particular Robespierre and Petion, became the ideologists and pioneers of the movement of revolutionary democrats. They criticized the relationship between society and the government, advocated the development of democracy andsuppression of the monarchy.
Their like-minded people Marat and Danton actively used the situation in the country as a result of the French Revolution to achieve their goals. The main ideas of the revolutionary democrats are connected with the achievement of people's autocracy. Step by step, they sought to achieve their goal through dictatorship.
Russian activists picked up and adapted this idea to their own political system. In addition to French, they mastered German treatises and their views on political foundations. In their vision, the unity of the peasants was an active force capable of resisting the imperial terror. Their liberation from serfdom was an integral part of the program of the domestic revolutionary democrats.
Development background
The revolutionary movement began its development among the admirers of democracy and freedom of the peasants. There were not many of them. This social stratum figures among the revolutionary democrats as the main revolutionary force. The imperfection of the political system and the low standard of living contributed to the formation of such a movement.
Main reasons for starting publicistic activity:
- serfdom;
- distinction between population strata;
- backwardness of the country from the leading European countries.
Real criticism of the revolutionary democrats was aimed at the autocracy of the emperor. This became the basis for the development of new trends:
- propaganda (ideologist P. L. Lavrov);
- conspiratorial(headed by P. N. Tkachev);
- rebellious (leader M. A. Bakunin).
Members of the social movement belonged to the bourgeois class and had specific problems with infringement of rights or a difficult existence. But the close relationship with the exploited part of the population developed in the revolutionary democrats a clear antipathy to the state system. They stuck to their cause despite harassment, attempted arrests, and similar expressions of dissatisfaction from the government.
Publicists began to publish their works with contemptuous discontent and humiliation of bureaucratic activities. There were thematic circles among students. The obvious ignorance of the problems and the low standard of living of the ordinary population openly resented an increasing number of people. The excitement and the desire to resist the enslavers united the hearts and thoughts of the activists and forced them to move from words to actions. Under such conditions, the revolutionary-democratic movement began to take shape.
Formation
The main ideologists and representatives of the revolutionary democrats were A. I. Herzen, V. G. Belinsky, N. P. Ogarev, N. G. Chernyshevsky.
They were ardent opponents of serfdom and tsarist autocracy. It all started with a small circle with a philosophical bias under the leadership of Stankevich. Soon Belinsky left the circle, organizing his own movement. Dobrolyubov and Chernyshevsky joined him. They led the organizationrepresenting the interests of the peasants and advocating the abolition of serfdom.
Herzen and his comrades-in-arms also acted separately, conducting journalistic activities in exile. The difference in the ideology of Russian activists was their attitude towards the people. Here the peasantry, in the views of the revolutionary democrats, acts as the basis of the struggle against tsarism, inequality and their own rights. The proposed innovations in the legal system by Western utopians were actively criticized.
Activist Ideas
The domestic activists based their ideology on the teachings of the revolutionary democrats of the Westerners. A number of uprisings against feudalism and materialism broke out in European countries in the 18th and 19th centuries. Most of their works are based on the idea of fighting serfdom. They actively opposed the political views of the liberals, as they were not at all interested in the life of the people.
There were attempts to organize revolutionary protests against the autocracy and the liberation of the peasants. These events took place in 1861. This is the year when serfdom was abolished. But the revolutionary democrats did not support such a reform. They immediately revealed the pitfalls that were hidden under the guise of the abolition of serfdom. In fact, it did not give freedom to the peasants. To fully ensure freedom, it was necessary not just to destroy the enslaving rules in relation to the peasants on paper, but to deprive the landowners of land and all rights. The program of the revolutionary democrats called on the people to break the social system and move towards socialism. These were supposed to be the first steps towards class equality.
AlexanderHerzen and his activities
He went down in history as an outstanding publicist and one of the pioneers of political emigration. He grew up in the house of his landowner father. As an illegitimate child, he received a surname that his father simply came up with. But such a twist of fate did not prevent the boy from getting a decent upbringing and education of a noble level.
Books from the father's library formed the worldview of the child, even in his youth. The Decembrist uprising of 1825 made a strong impression on him. In his student years, Alexander became friends with Ogarev and was an active participant in a youth circle against the government. For his activities, he was exiled to Perm along with like-minded people. Thanks to his connections, he was transferred to Vyatka, where he got a job in the office. Later, he ended up in Vladimir as an adviser to the board, where he met his wife.
The link only further inflamed Alexander's personal dislike for the government, in particular for the state system as a whole. From childhood, he watched the life of the peasants, their suffering and their pain. The struggle for the existence of this estate became one of the goals of the activist Herzen. Since 1836, he has been publishing his journalistic works. In 1840 Alexander saw Moscow again. But due to unrestrained statements about the police, he was again exiled a year later. This time the link did not last long. Already in 1842, the publicist returned to the capital.
The turning point of his life was his move to France. Here he maintained relations with French revolutionaries and European emigrants. Democratic revolutionaries of the 19th century share theirviews on the development of an ideal society and ways to achieve it. Having lived there for only 2 years, Alexander loses his wife and moves to London. In Russia at this time, he receives the status of an exile for refusing to return to his homeland. Together with his friends Ogarev and Chernyshevsky, he began to publish newspapers of a revolutionary nature with calls for a complete reconstruction of the state and the overthrow of the monarchy. He lives his last days in France, where he was buried.
Formation of Chernyshevsky's views
Nikolai is the son of the clergyman Gabriel Chernyshevsky. It was expected that he would follow in the footsteps of his father, but the young man did not live up to the hopes of his relatives. He completely rejected religion and entered St. Petersburg University in the department of history and philology. The student paid the greatest attention to Russian literature. He was also interested in the works of French historians and German philosophers. After studying, Chernyshevsky taught for almost 3 years and instilled a revolutionary spirit in his students.
In 1853 he married. The young wife supported her husband in all endeavors, participated in his creative life. This year was marked by another event - moving to St. Petersburg. It is here that he begins his journalistic career in the Sovremennik magazine. Democratic revolutionaries in literature expressed their feelings and thoughts about the fate of the country.
Initially, his articles de alt with works of art. But even here the influence of ordinary peasants was visible. Ability to freely discuss the hard lot of serfsprovided by the relaxation of censorship during the reign of Alexander II. Gradually, Nikolai Gavrilovich begins to turn to modern political topics, expressing his thoughts in his works.
He had his own idea of the rights of the peasants and the conditions for their release. Chernyshevsky and his like-minded people were confident in the strength of the common people, who must unite and follow them into a brighter future, with an armed uprising. For his activities, Chernyshov was sentenced to life exile in Siberia. While imprisoned in the fortress, he wrote his famous work What Is to Be Done? Even after going through penal servitude, during his exile he continued his work, but it no longer had an impact on political events.
Ogarev's life path
The landowner Platon Ogarev did not even suspect that his growing inquisitive son Nikolai was the future Russian revolutionary democrat. The boy's mother died when Ogaryov was not even two years old. Initially, he was educated at home and entered the mathematical faculty of Moscow University. There he became friends with Herzen. With him he was exiled to Penza to his father's estate.
After returning home, he began to travel abroad. I enjoyed visiting the University of Berlin. Since childhood, suffering from epilepsy, he was treated in Pyatigorsk in 1838. Here he met with the Decembrists in exile. Such an acquaintance played an important role in the development of Ogarev, a publicist and a fighter for the equality of classes.
After the death of his father, he received the rights to the estate and began the process of freeing his peasants, speakingopponent of serfdom. After spending 5 years traveling around the countries of Western Europe, he met European reformers. Returning to his homeland, he will try to realize the plan of industrialization among the peasants.
On the territory of their lands, they open schools, hospitals, launch cloth, distillery and sugar factories. Having broken off relations with his first wife, who did not support her husband's views, he formalizes relations with N. A. Pankova. Together with her, Ogarev moves to A. Herzen in London.
A year later, Pankova leaves Nikolai and goes to Alexander. Despite this, Ogarev and Herzen actively publish newspapers and magazines. Democratic revolutionaries distribute publications critical of government policies to the Russian population.
To achieve his goals, he, along with Herzen, goes to Switzerland and tries to establish relations with Russian emigrants. In particular, with the anarchist Bakunin and the conspirator Nechaev. In 1875 he was expelled from the country and returned to London. Here he died of an epileptic seizure.
Philosophy of publicists
The ideas of the revolutionary democrats are undoubtedly dedicated to the peasants. Herzen often touches on the subject of the problem of personality in interaction with society. The imperfection of society and problems in relations between different layers lead society to complete degradation and destruction. Which is very dangerous.
He notes the problems of relations between the individual in particular and society as a whole: the individual is formed on the basis of social norms, but at the same time, the individual affects the development and level of society in whichdwells.
The imperfection of the social system is also touched upon in the works of his associates - Chernyshevsky and Ogarev. This dangerous and open criticism of the revolutionary democrats against tsarism provoked outbreaks of popular unrest in different regions of the country. Their ideas showed a desire to come to socialism, bypassing capitalism.
Chernyshevsky, in turn, shared the philosophy of materialism. Through the prism of scientific evidence and personal views, a person in his works is one with nature, amenable to physiological needs. In contrast to Herzen, he does not separate the individual from nature and does not elevate a person above society. For Nikolai Gavrilovich, man and the world around him are a single whole, complementary to each other. The more positivity and philanthropy prevail in society, the more fruitful and better the social environment will be.
Pedagogical views
Pedagogy was given an equally important role. The real criticism of the revolutionary democrats is aimed at educating the younger generation with the makings of a free full-fledged member of society. No wonder Chernyshevsky had teaching experience. In his opinion, love of freedom and self-will is laid down from the very beginning. The personality must be comprehensively developed, constantly ready for self-sacrifice for the sake of common goals. The problem of education is also a problem of the reality of that time.
The level of science was very low, and the teaching methods were backward and ineffective. In addition, he was a supporter of equalitymale and female education. Man is the crown of creation, and attitudes towards him should be appropriate. Our society is made up of such individuals, and their level of education affects the quality of society as a whole.
He believed that all the problems in society do not depend on belonging to a particular class and, moreover, to the financial situation. This is a problem of low level of upbringing and poor education. Such backwardness leads to the death of social norms and the decay of society. Social change is a direct path to change in general and personality in particular.
His associate Herzen was a supporter of folk pedagogy. Revolutionary democrats expressed in literature the problems of the imperfect position of children in society. The essence of his "folk pedagogy" was that knowledge should be drawn not from books, but from the environment. It is the people who are the bearers of valuable information that the younger generation needs.
First of all, love for work and for the motherland should be instilled in children. The main goal is to educate a free person who puts the interests of the people above all else and is disgusted with idleness. Children should develop freely in the environment of the common people, not limiting their knowledge to book sciences. The child should feel respect for himself from the educator. This is the principle of patient love.
To bring up a full-fledged personality, it is necessary to develop from childhood thinking, self-expression and independence, as well as oratory skills and respect forto his people. According to Herzen, for a full-fledged upbringing, a balance is needed between the freedom of children's will and with discipline. It is these components that contribute to the development of a full-fledged individual serving his society.
Legal views
The activity of democratic revolutionaries affects all aspects of public life. An example for the Russian revolutionaries was the European utopian socialists. Their admiration was directed towards attempts to build a new social order by freeing the working people from harsh working conditions. At the same time, the utopians reduced the role of the people. For the democratic revolutionaries, the peasants were part of an active driving force capable of overthrowing the monarchy by united efforts.
Representatives of the active movement put up for public discussion the imperfection of the legal system of the state. The problem of serfdom was the impunity of the landowners. The oppression and exploitation of the peasants further exacerbated the class contradictions. This contributed to the disintegration of mass discontent until the proclamation of the abolition of serfdom in 1861.
But, in addition to the rights of the peasants, the real criticism of the revolutionary democrats (briefly) concerned the rest of the population. At the heart of their works, publicists touched on the topic of crime through the prism of the views of the exploiting masses. What does it mean? According to state laws, any action directed at the ruling classes was considered criminal.
Democratic revolutionaries proposed to classify criminal acts. Divide them into thosewere dangerous and aimed at the ruling classes, and those that infringe on the rights of the exploited. It was important to create a system of equal punishment, regardless of social status.
Herzen personally wrote articles about the role of bribery and embezzlement, comparing the problems of the fatherland and France. In his opinion, such criminal acts humiliated the humanity and dignity of the whole society. He singles out duels in a separate category. In his opinion, such acts are contrary to the norms of a civilized society.
Revolutionary democrats of the 19th century did not bypass the anti-social activities of officials, who stubbornly turned a blind eye to all lawsuits of the population. The imperfection of the court system was in the class approach. In any litigation, the dispute was resolved in favor of the state ruling classes. In his vision and in the vision of his associates, the new society must have fair justice that provides protection to everyone who needs it.
Publicistic works and active actions of the revolutionary democrats are securely entrenched in the history of the Russian state. Their activity has not disappeared without a trace, but lives in the subconscious of each subsequent generation. It is our duty to preserve it in the future.
