O „problemă blestemată”: identitatea națională în istoria intelectuală rusă din prima jumătate a secolului al XIX-lea
A “Cursed Question”: National Identity in Russian Intellectual History in the First Half of the 19th Century

Summary/Abstract: In this paper we aim to examine how the question of national identity fostered the emergence of the Russian intelligentsia. The first half of the 19th century was an era dominated by censorship and constraints, but the debate on national identity provided intellectuals with the means to seek and propose solutions to society's most pressing problems. Thus, we will examine the ideology of each camp within the intelligentsia (both Slavophiles and Westernizers) and their attempts to define national identity. The influence of Herder and Hegel helped some members of the intelligentsia to discover a forgotten treasure in the country's history: the tradition and culture of old Russia, which demonstrated, according to the Slavophiles, that Russia had its own identity and should no longer imitate the West which was experiencing a moral and spiritual decline. On the other hand, the Westernizers also argued for the need for a national character, adding that its maturing would take a long time. In their view, Russia belonged to the family of European nations and should not leave the path of progress and civilization. Dissatisfaction with contemporary realities during the reign of Nicholas I led the former to find salvation in the past, in Orthodox traditions and spirituality, and the latter - in a future shaped by Western progress and civilization.

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