Yvanka Raynova
Published: 2024-06-12
Total Pages: 258
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The book "Between Adaptation and Revolt. Discussions and Research Trends in Bulgarian Philosophy" brings together seven studies, which analyses some of the main discussions in Bulgarian philosophy, and offers also philosophical portraits of contemporary Bulgarian scholars of different generations: Nikolay Raynov, Azarya Polikarov, Julia Kristeva, Rosen Stupoff and Hristo Stoev. As in her previous books on Contemporary Western Philosophy, Yvanka Raynova uses here the approach of comparative and translative hermeneutics. This allows her to prove two main theses. Firstly, unlike some authors who consider Bulgarian philosophy and culture to be characterized by a lack of tradition, she maintains that tradition does exist, but that it is marked by three historical ruptures: The fall of Bulgaria under Ottoman domination in 1396, the gradual decapitation of philosophical and cultural pluralism after 1945, and the downfall of Marxism following the collapse of "real socialism" after 1990. Second, Raynova opposes the view that there were only "minor deviations" from Marxism-Leninism in Bulgarian philosophy during socialism, showing that a number of Bulgarian philoso-phers not only resisted the dominant ideological discourse, but also addressed serious issues, entering into discussion with the leading Western scholars of the time.