LANGUAGE ONTOLOGY IN RUSSIAN RELIGIOUS METAPHYSICS

Abstract

Th e article considers the development of views on the language in Russian religious metaphysics of the second half of the 19th century. Th e language ontologisation was typical for the representatives of the religious philosophy of N. P. Gilyarov-Platonov (1824–1887), V. D. Kudryavtsev-Platonov (1828–1891), V. S. Solovyyov(1853–1900), where a word is a natural product of our mind, a material basis of the deployment of person’s cogiativity, a way of expression of its results. Language acts as the ontological basis of logical thinking, it gives mind a form of generality, exempts knowledge from psychologism. A relation of thought to a word is compared to the relation of soul to a body. Th e Russian philosophers note that the word and concept are integrally connected, but at the same time they are signifi cantly various, it’s a delusion to mix concepts with words. Th e interest to a language ontology enriched the Russian religious philosophy with the new metaphysical problems and subjects, it was an expression of God-seeking tendencies which existed in public consciousness of Russian society. Refs 10.

Keywords:

language philosophy, ontology, Russian religious metaphysics, historical etymology, language consciousness, rationalism, positivism, monism, objective reality, discourse, traditionalism, mysticism, knowledge of God, an empirical knowledge, rational knowledge, ideal knowledge, Godseeking