Traditions of philosophical education at St. Petersburg University

Abstract

The article deals with the formation of the tradition of philosophical education at St. Petersburg University, starting with the pre-revolutionary period. It is noted that a tradition can have both an open and closed character, in the first case, they are focused on the preservation and conservation of values, in the second, they are liable to change. Educational culture dialectically combines both tendencies, thus its culture must be approached holistically. The tradition of philosophical education in St. Petersburg is connected with the first secular educational institution university, established in 1724. We study the experience and characteristics of the organization of educational process in philosophy at the Academic University, the Imperial St. Petersburg, Petrograd and Leningrad universities. Especially analyzed the role of the great Russian scientist and organizer of science M. V. Lomonosov in the creation of St. Petersburg and Moscow universities, the development of Russia’s scientific culture. This article shows some of the main traditions of philosophical education at the university: the tradition of Russian philosophy, its development under the influence of Western philosophy, concepts of Kant and Hegel, and the tradition of democracy and internationalism in education organization. And it considers such cultural phenomena as ruptures in the formation of Russian philosophy. It also examines the university’s tradition of studying ancient philosophy, logic, psychology, philosophy of law, and the history of philosophy. It has been emphasized that the process of intensive formation of philosophical education at the university bore its fruit. In the early twentieth century, original concepts by N. O. Lossky, S. L. Frank, S. I. Povarnin were developed. A significant place in the educational process is occupied by history of philosophy courses, logic, psychology, and social philosophy . Special attention is devoted to the development of philosophical education in the Soviet period. It is noted that during the existence of the Faculty of Philosophy of the University of Leningrad, despite difficulties, the number of students and teachers signifi cantly increased, there was first set up the system of training specialists philosophers. The University during that time became a center of philosophical training of personnel for universities of the city and other regions of the country.