Tolsteneva U.L. Existential Experience and Community Commitment

Abstract: Little is said about existentialism in Russian literature. Time has passed since every new work related to that school of philosophy sparked interest. In their researches S. Velikovsky, T. Kuzmina, E. Soloviev, T. Tavrizian and others have described the basic provisions of existential philosophy and analyzed their meaning. In the middle of the last century each new publication on existentialism arose great interest. However, it is no more the case. None researches devoted to existentialism have appeared in Russian literature over the last years. As a result, general interest towards existentiailsm has considerably faded. No more we remember existentialists' passionate statement that it is impossible to be back on track after Dachau and Buchenwald concentration camps. This creates the need in new grounds for philosophical reflection. Unfortunately, many authors think that existential philosophy with all its appealing to spiritual experience does not work for our time. There are attempts to 'change' existentialism, to adjust it to modern realities refusing the importance of existential experience as an independent and singular emotional experience.  Some researchers even say that existentialism opposed to community commitment and activity in general. This evaluation is neither just nor acceptable. In her research Tolsteneva has used the principle of historicism that allowed to compare existential traditions to modern interpretations of existential experience. The researcher has also used principles and methods of philosophical anthropology. The author tries to analyze some researchers' attempts to 'change' existentialism and adjust it to the needs of modern social sciences. The author notes that these attempts to 'adjust' 'scandalous' existential thought to modern social situations can be viewed as a review of existentialism and reinterpretation of a unique choice made by personality. The author also notes that by no means existentialism is a teaching about estrangement. Of course, the concept of activity as it is interpreted within the framework of positivist progress is alien for existentialism. However, adepts of existentialism paid much attention to responsibility for what's going on in the world. Existentialism is not the philosophy of non-activity, estrangement or submission to social dictate. Within the framework of existentialism, intellectual effors are destined to provide a sober and bitter evaluation of today's situation in the world. By analyzing the history of existentialism, the author of the article states that existentialism's community commitment is in its search for the meaning including the meaning of social processes as the existential solution of the problem. 

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