A Relapse of Late Stalinism: the Method of the Ideological Wolf Pack Cover Image
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Рецидив на късния сталинизъм – метод на идеологическата глутница
A Relapse of Late Stalinism: the Method of the Ideological Wolf Pack

Author(s): Martin Tabakov
Subject(s): Philosophy
Published by: Институт по философия и социология при БАН
Keywords: Logic; Marxism; totalitarian society; discussion; Michaltschew; Stalinism; Bulgarian philosophy;

Summary/Abstract: One of the typical traits of totalitarian societies is that they have an official ideology and exercise complete ideological control. Such mechanisms were particularly operative in those scientific areas that had some relation to ideology. Michaltschew exercised much greater authority among philosophers than did the Politburo member T. Pavlov. Pavlov used the political situation to strike back at Michaltschew and arranged a “discussion” of the latter’s treatise. This staged “debacle” was highly representative of the time – it was a relapse of Late Stalinism. This was a politically inspired victimisation that was devoid of logical arguments. The fact that a treatise is criticised using political arguments does not imply it is brilliant. Michaltschew discusses the main philosophical assumptions that apply before and after the province of traditional logic but lie outside the trends of contemporary logic. He provides a presentationist interpretation of logic. In fact the author and his critics were not familiar with the development of contemporary logic. The article discusses the influence of the "dispute" on the development of Bulgarian logic and the relationship between totalitarian government and science; the echo of the "discussion" among Bulgarian intellectuals; and some moral problems – the inconsistent justifications offered by the participants and their apologists.

  • Issue Year: XXII/2013
  • Issue No: 2
  • Page Range: 5-15
  • Page Count: 11
  • Language: Bulgarian