The Metaphysics of the Tragic Towards a Socio-Philosophical Analysis of Bonapartism

Abstract

The author analyzes the concept of “the tragic” in socio-philosophical aspect. The tragic is conceived not only as a property of the individual, but also as a property of social consciousness. The methodology of study rests on the necessity of studying the problem at the level of society as a whole, at the level of an ordinary person and at the level of a leader. The state of society during conditions of system crisis is analyzed with the use of the concepts of the “personification of power,” and the “depersonalization of the common man.” In a “Bonaparte” situation, the leader personalizes public self-consciousness. The special attention is given thin distinctions of concepts personification and personalization. The author emphasizes the paradoxical salutary nature of the Bonaparte dictatorship for society against the background of the unsatisfactory performance of failed politicians.