Work · Russian Religious Philosophy
Three Conversations
Dialogues on war, progress and the end of history that reject Tolstoy’s doctrine of non-resistance and close with the “Short Tale of the Antichrist”.
Introduction
Solovyov wrote the “Three Conversations on War, Progress and the End of World History” in 1899 and published them in 1900, shortly before his death. Five Russians on the Mediterranean, among them a general, a young prince who follows Tolstoy and Mr Z, the author’s voice, discuss whether war can be just, whether progress can save humanity and how evil should be resisted. The general defends armed protection of the innocent; the prince’s doctrine of non-resistance is presented as an empty moralism. The book closes with the “Short Tale of the Antichrist”, in which a benevolent superman unites the world and is unmasked only by a remnant of Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant believers. The tale was read as a prophecy in the twentieth century; its picture of an Asian conquest of Europe reflects the fear of a “yellow peril” current at the time.
Connections
Criticizes
- The Kingdom of God Is Within You1894 · Leo Tolstoy
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