Socio-historical factors in the development of the «history of mentalities» as a direction of historical anthropology

Abstract

The development of theoretical approaches of historical anthropology as a modern philosophy of history was manifested in the stage of the history of mentalities, to which the theoretical approaches formulated in the studies of J. Le Hoff made a significant contribution. In their space, ontological, epistemological and axiological factors were formed, which are important for the further dynamics of historical and anthropological concepts. Thus, the ontological factor contributed to the formation of the reflexive field of the history of mentalities: the psychological and cultural horizon of Western European societies of the Middle Ages and Early Modern Times, conscious and subconscious aspects of mentality, rules and values of social behavior, various aspects of vital activities and everyday life, widespread religious and parareligious social idea. The epistemological factor had a significant impact on the formation of the methodological toolkit of history of mentalities studies. It was based on theoretical approaches: distinguishing mentality as the main cognitive category; recognition of the importance of interdisciplinary interactions for a relevant understanding of the past; establishment of historical and anthropological concepts of cognitive dialogue with a wider range of scientific disciplines; formation of the theory of the «long Middle Ages». The axiological factor contributed to the formation in historical-anthropological studies of the ideal of mental originality of societies in past eras and in the present. It was also reflected in the analytical and unbiased attitude of specialists to the medieval socio-cultural reality, in which there is no idealization of its scientific and artistic achievements. The formation of the mentioned substantive aspects of the history of mentalities, which is a stage in the development of historical anthropology, was carried out largely due to the influence of socio-historical processes of the second half of the last century. Among them, we note such phenomena of a global scale, as liberation from colonial dependence of the countries of the global East and Latin America; the emergence and development of left and left-radical social and political movements in the Western European macro-region. The cited socio-historical processes became one of the foundations of development in historical anthropology research oriented toward the analysis and understanding of the mental-cultural plane of past societies in subconscious and conscious dimensions as significantly significant factors of causality and peculiarities of their historical dynamics. The study and analysis of the cultural and psychological space of motivations, meaning and probable influence of historical dynamics on prospective aspects of the development of societies formed the main goal of historical anthropology as a modern philosophy of history. Socio-historical processes of the second half of the last century created an objective social and intellectual-heuristic need for the development of historical-anthropological concepts for a relevant understanding of the mentality of past societies as a significant factor in historical processes and, to a certain extent, the socio-cultural dynamics of the present. The study and understanding of the history of mentality of the psychological-cultural horizon of the dynamics of societies and macro-regions of the past actualizes its originality relative to its contemporary philosophical-historical theory of local civilizations by A. J. Toynbee. In contrast to this concept’s understanding of such planes of historical dynamics as geocultural and spiritual-religious, historical anthropology as a modern philosophy of history directs its research to the analysis of the mental-cultural and social-behavioral bases of various phenomena of the past. This creates opportunities for historical and anthropological studies in the history of mentalities direction to understand the causality and essence of historical processes, to understand their impact on the development of modern societies and their dynamics in the future.