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naverhtrad's review
5.0
In spite of the sesquipedalian title, this is actually a very quick, very gripping and indeed very thrilling page-turner - I know, it seems like a contradiction in terms for a book of political philosophy.
But the deliberately Platonic structure, using a debate between five characters (each representing a very specific theological perspective) as a launch point to talk about the nature of evil, the ethics of war, the fate of European civilisation and the meaning of human progress is incredibly brilliant. Solovyov clearly has a strong anti-pacifist viewpoint, but he isn't a jingo or a militarist either; it would be interesting to learn why he thinks of China and the problem of East Asia in the way that he does, though.
And in the Short Story of the Anti-Christ near the end, he displays a very keen (and to my mind, profound) suspicion that evil is actually subtle - evil in its worst form is seductive, slippery and makes sneaky mutilations to what is recognisably good.
This book easily deserves to be counted amongst the great lay-theological works of Russia's 19th century, and it is must-read for anyone who is concerned with moral theology in the political realm.
But the deliberately Platonic structure, using a debate between five characters (each representing a very specific theological perspective) as a launch point to talk about the nature of evil, the ethics of war, the fate of European civilisation and the meaning of human progress is incredibly brilliant. Solovyov clearly has a strong anti-pacifist viewpoint, but he isn't a jingo or a militarist either; it would be interesting to learn why he thinks of China and the problem of East Asia in the way that he does, though.
And in the Short Story of the Anti-Christ near the end, he displays a very keen (and to my mind, profound) suspicion that evil is actually subtle - evil in its worst form is seductive, slippery and makes sneaky mutilations to what is recognisably good.
This book easily deserves to be counted amongst the great lay-theological works of Russia's 19th century, and it is must-read for anyone who is concerned with moral theology in the political realm.
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