Ivan Ilyin

This article is about the Russian political philosopher. For the Austrian philosopher, see Ivan Illich.
In this name that follows Eastern Slavic naming customs, the patronymic is Alexandrovich and the family name is Ilyin.

Ivan Ilyin
Born
Ivan Alexandrovich Ilyin

9 April 1883
Moscow, Moscow Governorate, Russian Empire
Died21 December 1954(1954-12-21) (aged 71)
Zollikon, Switzerland
Alma materMoscow State University
Era20th-century philosophy
RegionPolitical and religious philosophy
Signature

Ivan Alexandrovich Ilyin (Russian: Иван Александрович Ильин, romanized: Ivan Aleksandrovich Il'in; 9 April [O.S. 28 March] 1883 – 21 December 1954) was a Russian jurist, religious and political philosopher, publicist, orator, and conservative monarchist. While he saw Russia's 1917 February Revolution as a "temporary disorder", the October Revolution, in his view, marked a "national catastrophe". This conviction led him to oppose the Bolshevik regime.[1] He became a white émigré journalist, aligning himself with Slavophile beliefs and emerging as a key ideologue of the Russian All-Military Union. This organization firmly believed that force stood as the sole means through which the Soviet regime could be toppled.[2]

As an anti-communist,[3] Ilyin found himself initially sympathetic to Adolf Hitler but his critique of totalitarianism was not embraced by the Nazi regime. In 1934, his refusal to comply with Nazi directives to spread propaganda led to his dismissal from the Russian Academic Institute, stripping him of employment opportunities.[4] Financial support from Sergei Rachmaninoff in 1938 allowed Ilyin to remain in Switzerland albeit barred from work or political engagement.[5] This phase of restriction led him to delve deeper into studies encompassing aesthetics, ethics, and psychology.[6]

Despite battling chronic illness, Ilyin wrote over 40 books and numerous articles in Russian and German. His works predominantly revolved around religion and Russia, although he diverged from Vladimir Solovyov's ideologies, advocating a global theocracy with whom the Russian religious and philosophical Renaissance of the early 20th century is usually associated.[1] Instead, Ilyin championed a patriarchal model of governance for Russia, rooted on Orthodoxy and faith in the autocratic tsar, distinguishing between autocracy and tyranny.[7][8][9] His writings echoed calls for heroism and moral aristocracy,[10] while cementing his role as a proponent of Western Russophobia.[11]

Remaining true to Right Hegelianism throughout his life, Ilyin explored themes of statehood, law, and power in world history.[12] He opposed federalism and neutrality,[13] and disdained Western analytic philosophy. As an ultranationalist, Ilyin was a critic of Western-style democracy, advocating instead for a government aligned with Russia's autocratic heritage.[14][15]

Ilyin's views on Russia's social structure and world history influenced some post-Soviet intellectuals and politicians, including Soviet dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn and Russian President Vladimir Putin.[16][17][18][19]

  1. ^ a b "Иван Александрович Ильин. Биография".[permanent dead link‍]
  2. ^ From the Russian Army to Underground Organizations: The Trajectory of the Whites in the European and French matrix
  3. ^ "Ivan Ilyin: A Fashionable Fascist".
  4. ^ "Il'in, Ivan Aleksandrovich (1883–1954) ." Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Encyclopedia.com. 22 Dec. 2022 <https://www.encyclopedia.com>.
  5. ^ "Vladimir Putin sits atop a crumbling pyramid of power". The Guardian. 2022-02-27.
  6. ^ ETHICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS IN THE WORKS OF I.A. ILYIN by Olga Savvina and Ivan Lapshin
  7. ^ "Putin's plan to restore the Romanovs (Part 3) | Lowy Institute".
  8. ^ Ilyin I. A., On the monarchy and the Republic. The danger of Monarchy, p. 568
  9. ^ Walter Lacquer (2015)
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Valliere was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Philip T. Grier (1994) The Complex Legacy of Ivan Il'in, p. 151. In: Russian Thought After Communism: The Recovery of a Philosophical Heritage edited by James Patrick Scanlan
  12. ^ "Иван Ильин: Война учит нас жить, любя нечто высшее · Родина на Неве". 2022-08-03.
  13. ^ ""Ich möchte dem Schweizervolk dienen"". 2014-12-28.
  14. ^ Snyder, Timothy (2016-09-20). "Opinion | How a Russian Fascist Is Meddling in America's Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-10-21.
  15. ^ "Read Ivan Ilyin to Understand Modern Russia". 2017-08-24.
  16. ^ "Александр Солженицын. Как нам обустроить Россию". Lib.ru. 1990-09-18. Retrieved 2022-05-11.
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference Robinson_2012 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  18. ^ Cite error: The named reference Snyder_2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  19. ^ Koposov, Nikolay (February 2022). "Populism and Memory: Legislation of the Past in Poland, Ukraine, and Russia". East European Politics and Societies: And Cultures. 36 (1): 272–297. doi:10.1177/0888325420950806. ISSN 0888-3254. S2CID 233624834.