«Завершение или начало?» Историческая философия Г. Шпета как фундамент Института философии

One of the most interesting pages in the creative biography of G.G. Shpet is his leadership in the Institute of Scientific Philosophy (1921–1923) – the topic which is only indicated, but not yet sufficiently researched today. The article at­tempts to characterize the intellectual and organizational efforts of G.G. Shpet as director of the Institute of Scientific Philosophy and demonstrate the importance of his activities for preserving the tradition of Russian philosophical culture in the early years of Soviet power. The relevance of his historical experience lies in the fact that he skillfully combined managerial duties and scientific leader­ship. The analysis of this experience allows us today to ponder about the effec­tiveness of modern management strategies, which often separate management from the content of scientific activity in various intellectual and cultural institu­tions, guided by the productivity of the idea of “division of intellectual labor”. Meanwhile, leadership functions have significantly influence on the develop­ment of thematic priorities in science, as evidenced by the experience of Shpet’s directorship. His activities as director of the Institute of Scientific Philosophy are considered in the context of the socio-cultural situation of that time, as well as taking into account the intellectual and existential heritage of the philosopher: his reflections on the very essence of philosophical knowledge, on the historical fate of domestic intellectual culture; in particular, in the context of the draft of the summary of the report “What is philosophy” published below, which he read at a meeting of the institution headed by him on October 20, 1922.