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Abstract: The article is devoted to the explosion of the myth of spontaneous origination of early Greek science and philosophy on the territory of Ancient Greece. The article traces the origins of the common misconceptions, and criticizes the tendency of studying philosophy of Ancient Greek as an isolated phenomenon. The author refers to a long tradition and extensive study of cultural relations between the Front East and Ancient Greece, and offers easy and clear methodology for determining the level of Oriental influence over Greek philosophical thought; the methodology is expressed in viewing the teachings of Ancient philosophers in chrono-topic interconnection. According to the author, chronological-geographical principle of studying Ancient philosophy has heuristic value concerning the content of philosophical doctrines, as well as the reconstruction of reception of Eastern knowledge by Ancient Greeks; in addition, it allows including into research the number of thinkers, which do not fit into any school. Based on statistical data, the article concludes about quantitative predominance of thinkers of Asia Minor’s origins on the list of philosophers of the archaic and pre-classic age.

Keywords: philosophy, mythology, poetry, science, Ancient Greece, Asia Minor, cultural genesis, spiritual genealogy, chronotope, “Greek miracle”.

Abstract: The article presents three approaches towards the problem of so-called paranormal. The first could be considered as a subjective one: the paranormal phenomena are regarded as perception errors, imaginary objects, or abnormal visions. The second approach presupposes objective existence of such deviations and defines them as fundamentally knowable (although not immediately, but rather in the distant future; what is considered as paranormal in a given moment are only those facts, which contradict to the known laws of nature). The third view is based on the admission of objective character of paranormal too, but contrary to the previous version, this one is agnostic. Within this approach, the possibility of any reliable knowledge of the nature of paranormal is rejected. The reason for this is incompatibility of one or another kind of the observed phenomena with human cognitive ability. The authors elaborate the idea that a phenomenon, which most properly matches the concept of “paranormal”, is the one characterized by singularity, uniqueness, incompatibility with any known laws of nature and causal connections, and, consequently, unpredictable; a phenomenon, which is not a subject of verification and falsification, in other words, unchecked with scientific methods. However, the very possibility of such events (primarily, in the supernatural sense) is unlikely to be recognized as problematic so far.

Keywords: paranormal, laws of nature, cognition, individuality, probability, predictability

Abstract: In the article, history of philosophy is considered from the viewpoint of empirical criminology and philosophy of crime. Thus, biographies of outstanding philosophers look surprisingly. According to criminological analysis of the history of philosophy, many respectable philosophers were under suspicion, investigation, and trial; they were arrested, deprived of freedom, imprisoned, sent to exile. Some great philosophers were sentenced to the capital punishment; some escaped from the jail and emigrated. In order to avoid this, many philosophers acted secretly; for publishing, they used pseudonyms and desinformation about publisher and publication place. Nevertheless, some were detected and “wanted” by police and church secret services. For the first time in scientific literature, such facts are gathered together, condensed and connected with abstracttheoretical discussion on metaphysics of crime in general. Philosophical attitude to crime is elaborated, according to which legal norm (law) represents stability aspect of society; and crime – the mutability one. Future life-conditions are not definite. In order to survive in a long run, the society has to have a limited sub-system of potential criminals at every stage of its development. Such sub-system is necessary for adequate adaptation to indefinite future conditions. However, in the supplement to sub-system, which represents change (i.e., development by adaptation to new lifeconditions), society must have a sub-system, which represents non-change (stability), and self-conservation. The abovementioned sub-systems are mutually restrictive; they complement oppositions, which make up the real society undergoing development. Scientific novelty of the article: for the first time in the worldwide theoretical criminology, a discrete-mathematical-model of formal-axiological aspect of crime is submitted. According to this model, “crime”, “empirical-knowledge” and other phenomena are considered as evaluation-functions determined by two evaluation-variables in formalaxiology algebra.

Keywords: criminology, history-of-philosophy, norm, crime, stability, flexibility, value, discrete-mathematical-model of formal-axiology of criminal activity.

Abstract: The article presents a typology of thinking based on the experimental psychology and comparative anthropology with its subsequent projection on the problem of diverse interpretations of political phenomena and different forms of political action arising from it. The comparative characteristics of five modalities of thinking – rational, magical, aesthetic, ethical, and instrumental – are followed by the identification of the basic structuring rules, including way of perception of reality, forming judgments and building the new knowledge. Each set of rules is defined as an independent logic; political thinking and the related political action is analyzed as the consistent implementation of these logics, depending on the chosen modality. Core strategies of political behavior typical for each modality, as well as psychological triggers that stimulate the actualization of the rational, magical, ethical, aesthetic, or instrumental thinking and behavior are explored. Key findings are presented in the form of comparative tables describing the structure of each modality of political thought, the relation of the abstract and the concrete in the framework of different modalities, and logic of political action initiated by different modalities.

Keywords: political thinking, political action, political theory, typology of thinking, irrational in politics.

Abstract: The article analyses the role of different scientific conceptions in creating clearly philosophical stance of Eduard Gans’ viewpoint on the jurisprudence. The author concludes that several lines cross Gans’ works – Montesquieu, Savigny, Tibaut, Feuerbach, and particularly Hegel. The article contains detailed text analysis of Hegel’s “Philosophy of Law” and “Lectures on Philosophy of History” as the guidelines for Gans. Gans’ conception of the universal history of law and comparative method is in the sharp conflict with Savigny’s Historical School. The author underlines that the problem of philosophically proved comparative history of jurisprudence becomes the outstanding example of Gans and Savigny’s controversy, as well as of polemics between Philosophical and Historical School. The article shows that in Gans’ multi-volume work “The Law of Inheritance in a World-History Perspective”, universal history of law is applied to the law of inharitance “passes” through Spirit of Peoples; the role of the Roman law is seen as a key moment of the temporal process of the history of law, as well as the material for Gans’ disclosing his core idea. The other remarkable reason of two schools’ controversy is the difference in perception of the jurisprudence. Taking into account the diffuseness of Gans’ conclusions on the law of inharitance in concrete countries, the author states that the goal of the global “totality” was not achieved by Gans in his work because it was beyond the opportunities of the particular researcher.

Keywords: Gans, Savigny, universal history of law, Historical School of Jurisprudence, jurisprudence, comparativism.

Abstract: Based on E. Gans and F. Savigny’s works of 1810s and 1820s, the article analyses main issues, which were discussed by Historical and Philosophical School of Jurisprudence, namely, understanding of law; the role of nation in forming the law; the role of history in forming the law; comparison in law; selection of legal material; the place of jurisprudence in the system of sciences; the role of Roman law in the understanding of law. Gans represents philosophically oriented jurisprudence, while Savigny’s doctrine aims at the precise presentation of legal sources, thus obtaining anti-philosophical stance. Theory on nation represents the arterial line of collaboration between Gans and Savigny. Nevertheless, following Hegel’s philosophy of law, Gans supposes that the World Spirit is an absolute judicial instance dominating over nations, while nation is a carrier of the World Spirit. For Savigny, solely Spirit of the Peoples creates law, and legal material is produced by the essence of nation and its history. Gans’ universal history of law opposes Savigny’s historicism. According to Gans, comparison is needed for the search of truth; according to Savigny – for identification of the national tradition. The author examines Gans’ classification of different branches of jurisprudence, as well as Savigny’s viewpoint on the jurisprudence as a special science for lawyers. The article concludes that Gans’ and Savigny’s conceptions have much in common; yet, their heritage has different heuristic potential for history of political-judicial thought.

Keywords: Historical School of Jurisprudence, historicism, Savigny, Gans, universal history of law, comparativism.

Abstract: The introduction written in 1823 contains important methodological fundamentals of E. Gans’ multi-volume work “The Law of Inheritance in a World-History Perspective. Treatise on Universal Legal History”. In opposition to the Historical School of Jurisprudence and its founder F. Savigny, the author takes a philosophical stance. Although Gans underlines positive, cohesive role of this school for different authors of various sources, and especially mentions outstanding dogmatic and historical works of followers of the school, he marks that this school is characterized by the lack of proper attention to legislation activity and law as profession, as well as by the cult of external side. The author argues against rejection of the universal history of law, which is typical for the followers of this school. As a Hegelian, he denies the givenness of law; in his opinion, the law itself is a product of Reason. Based on this presupposition, he decidedly differs between Rechtskunde, Rechtsgelehrsamkeit, and legal science. He concludes about the necessity of the universal character of the history of law because it includes the totality of developing the concept of law in the course of time; consequently, no exclusive importance should be given to any law in respect to other law. In addition, the author explains the structure of his work giving special importance to the Roman law, and determining Rome as a key point in the entire universal history of law.

Keywords: universal history of law, legal science, Savigny, Historical School of Jurisprudence, Hegel, positive law.