This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Nihilist movement is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:
Related Sponsors
| Part of the Philosophy series on |
| Anarchism |
 |
|
Theory · Practice
|
|
Culture
|
|
Related topics
|
| Anarchism portal Philosophy portal Politics portal |
The Nihilist movement was a Russian anarchist [1] movement in the 1860s which rejected existing authorities and values. It is derived from the Latin word "nihil", which means "nothing". After the assassination of Tsar Alexander II in 1881, the Nihilists were known throughout Europe as proponents of the use of violence as a tool for political change.
Contents |
History
The Nihilists were outraged by the relative backwardness of life in Russia in comparison with Western countries such as England and France. Although the term Nihilist had been used before, its widespread usage began with the 1862 novel Fathers and Sons by the Russian author Ivan Turgenev. The main character of the novel, Bazarov, who describes himself as a Nihilist, wants to educate the people. This "go to the people – be the people" campaign reached its height in the 1870s, during which underground groups such as Circle of Tchaikovsky, People's Reprisal and Land and Liberty were formed. This became known as the Narodnik movement. The Russian State attempted to suppress them. In actions described by the Nihilists as propaganda of the deed many government officials were assassinated. In 1881 Alexander II was killed on the very day he had approved a proposal to call a representative assembly to consider new reforms.
Historical context
Beginning with the reign of Peter the Great (1682–1725), many in the Russian elite were fascinated by the technological, artistic, and intellectual achievements of Western Europe: "During the 1820s and 1830s Russian thought was influenced powerfully by several waves of German Romantic idealism and then the philosophy of Hegel, both of which raised...the concept of distinct national identity and of “inevitable” historical progress…" (Wasiolek, 3)
After the Crimean War (1853–56) however the Nihilists rejected the German-influenced liberals of the 1830–40s generation, decrying previous reforms as ineffective. Both sets of reformers were opposed by the conservative Slavophiles, who sought to defend established traditions and values.
Political philosophy
Nihilist political philosophy saw existing religions, political institutions, and morality as opposed to freedom.
See also
References
- Nihilism in Russian History
- Alexander Berkman, Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist - online text
- Kropotkin, P., Memories of a Revolutionist
- George Kennan and the Russian Empire: How America’s Conscience Became an Enemy of Tsarism by Helen Hundley
- Wasiolek, Edward. Fathers and Sons: Russia at the Cross-roads. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1993. ISBN 0-8057-9445-X
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 17 September 2008, at 02:02.
Wikipedia Authorship and Review
Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.
Wikipedia Usage Guidelines
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Nihilist movement".
The URL for this specific entry is:
All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.