Namli, E., Svenungsson, J. and Vincent, A.M. (eds) (2014) Jewish Thought, Utopia, and Revolution. Amsterdam: Rodopi, 2014. - 211 p.

The question immediately arises: why did the editors of this book decide to revisit the problems of "utopia" and "revolution" in twentieth-century Jewish thought? After all, these concepts have been described and analyzed in detail by a whole generation of scientists and thinkers, including Walter Benjamin, Ernst Bloch and Gustav Landauer. Nevertheless, the collection "Jewish Thought, Utopia and Revolution" proves to us that these questions are far from exhausted. Not only are there deep and subtle essays about well-known figures in this book, but it also provides a new perspective on Jewish thought, and perhaps this is its main value. The most striking pages of the book show that the authors are aware of the complex dynamics that permeate Jewish thought in the first half of the twentieth century. First, the authors shift their attention from German-speaking countries, whose thinkers have always been in the focus of researchers, to a country that was in the process of revolutionary transformation; secondly, the experience of exile, exile and emigration is considered as a special context for the formation of thought.

When people move, whether by their own will or that of others, their views inevitably change. This seemingly obvious idea is the basis of one of the most interesting articles in the collection. Elena Namli describes the life and work of Matvey Kagan (1889-1937), who worked with Mikhail Bakhtin in Nevel and Vitebsk. Before joining Bakhtin's circle, Kagan studied philosophy in Berlin and Marburg. His mentor was the famous Jewish neo-Kantian Herman Cohen. In his article, Namli describes how

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Kagan tried to combine Cohen's ethical universalism and Bakhtin's critique of neo-Kantianism. Thinking about Cohen's ideas in the context of revolution and utopia seems very appropriate. After all, at first glance it seems that these concepts must be very far from the German Kantian Jew. However, Namli shows that it is precisely in the context of the revolutionary turmoil that Cohen's works acquire special significance. In this way, Namli does not just review philosophical disputes, but also places them in a specific historical and political context. This is unavoidable and all the more interesting when it comes to the process of radical and harsh state transformations. Namli shows the sometimes unexpected evolution of Jewish thought depending on the change of context.

Similarly, Alexandra Polyan analyzes the works of some Yiddish poets who were born in the Russian Empire and then emigrated to the United States. While in New York and watching events from across the ocean, these poets were inspired by the communist revolution. In an effort to be part of this process, they created what they considered "revolutionary poetry." Polyan shows that they not only emphasized the poverty and injustice of life in the United States, but also, in the name of the revolution, built complex connections with the world literary tradition. On the one hand, they rejected all the world's literatures as non-revolutionary, gleefully teasing many of their bright representatives. But at the same time, Polyan notes their deep commitment to Russian literature and poetry, as well as to the canonical themes of Judaism. Thus, these poets not only tried to experience the communist revolution internally while in America, but also described the place of their exile, all the sorrows and sufferings that existed in it, using concepts and images borrowed from their native culture. Unwittingly, they became Russian-Jewish and American poets at the same time.

The main characters of Oleg Budnitsky's article are Jewish intellectuals and thinkers who fled the horrors of the civil War to Berlin. While in Berlin, they reacted violently to all the events taking place in their homeland. Because of the terrible massacres of Jews by the White Army, many emigrants of Jewish origin supported the Bolsheviks and their struggle for a more just society of the future. However, many others believed that ev-

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The Jews should be on the side of the Whites, since, firstly, they are equally responsible for the fall of the Russian Empire, and secondly, a united and strong Russia, in their opinion, would be a more favorable space for the Jewish diaspora to live than the communist state of the Bolsheviks. According to Budnitsky, this position caused heated debates among Berlin emigrants. However, not only the subject of disputes is interesting, but the place where they broke out is also important. During the civil war, people had almost no opportunity to express their opinions. So, oddly enough, disputes about the future of Jews in Russia and about the political loyalty of Jews appeared precisely in emigration.

Alana M. Vincent writes about the lives of Jewish intellectuals and thinkers, and analyzes their reflections on the revolution in a specific historical and political context. It describes the image of the revolution that is formed in the works of the famous artist Marc Chagall and Boris Schatz, founder of the Belzalel Academy of Arts in Jerusalem. As in the other cases described here, the context in which these two outstanding people perceived the revolution is essential. Vincent shows us that Schatz tried to make the Jewish spirit revolutionary by creating a school of" Jewish " art in Jerusalem, while Chagall associated himself, at least in certain periods of his work, with revolutionary proletarian art. And neither of them could fully understand their positions, because both were too closely connected with the cultural heritage in which they grew up. Therefore, Vincent notes, there is some irony in the fact that Schatz is remembered as the founder of his "academy", and Chagall - as the author of openly Jewish works. The revolution had an equally strong impact on the thought and creativity of these artists, catching each of them in a special place, but also "out of place".

In general, the book under review develops concepts and methods that have been developed over many decades in various humanities disciplines, but are not sufficiently involved in the study of Jewish thought. The book demonstrates broad cultural relationships, as well as the evolution of ideas in exile and emigration. Of course, in the history of the study of Jewish thought, such works have already been published. However, the main perspective of the book is the study of the thoughts, creativity and life of Russian-Jewish intellectuals who found themselves in a difficult situation.

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in Germany, the United States and Palestine, in the context of the Russian Revolution, it is very interesting and reveals new aspects of long-known stories.

However, some of the articles included in the book are very traditional in their approaches. The works dedicated to Hannah Arendt, Emmanuel Levinas, Theodor Adorno, Walter Benjamin Karl Levitz and Hans Blumenberg are quite insightful and transparent. They contribute to a new field of research on Jewish life in post-Holocaust Europe. It should be noted in the book and the variety of author's points of view. At the same time, it seems that the authors were fully aware of these differences. That is why the book as a whole gives the impression of a lively discussion and exchange of views. The opening article of the collection is largely autobiographical, it sets the tone and depth of the entire work. Judging by the general impression of integrity and high professionalism, the conference in Vilnius in June 2012, which served as the basis for the book, was not just an ordinary academic meeting, and the pages of the book allow us to feel the atmosphere of the conference in part.

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