The revolutionary knows that in the very depths of his being, not
only in words but also in deeds, he has broken all the bonds which
tie him to the social order and the civilized world with all its
laws, moralities, and customs, and with all its generally accepted
conventions. He is their implacable enemy, and if he continues to
live with them it is only in order to destroy them more speedily. from: SG Nechaev- The Catechism of a Revolutionary (1869)
In connection with the extreme maximalist tendencies of the end of the (eighteen) 'sixties the
sinister, grim, and characteristically Russian figure of Nechaev is of particular interest.
He was the founder of the revolutionary society called 'The Axe or the People's Justice'.
Nechaev composed the 'Revolutionary Catechism', a document of unusual interest,
unique of its kind. In this document is to be found the extreme expression of the
principles of atheistic revolutionary asceticism. They are the rules by which the genuine revolutionary should be guided, his manual, as it were, of the spiritual life. Nechaev's catechism is reminiscent to
a grim degree of Orthodox asceticism turned inside out and mixed with Jesuitism. He was
a sort of Isaac the Syrian and Ignatius Loyola of revolutionary socialism, the extremist
form of the revolutionary ascetic denial of the world. Nechaev was, of course, absolutely
sincere, and his fanaticism was of the extremest kind. His was the psychology of the
sectarian. He was prepared to burn his neighbour, but he was ready at any moment to be
burned himself. Nechaev alarmed everybody. Revolutionaries and socialists of all shades
rejected him and found that he was compromising the work of revolution and socialism.
Even Bakunin repudiated Nechaev.
sinister, grim, and characteristically Russian figure of Nechaev is of particular interest.
He was the founder of the revolutionary society called 'The Axe or the People's Justice'.
Nechaev composed the 'Revolutionary Catechism', a document of unusual interest,
unique of its kind. In this document is to be found the extreme expression of the
principles of atheistic revolutionary asceticism. They are the rules by which the genuine revolutionary should be guided, his manual, as it were, of the spiritual life. Nechaev's catechism is reminiscent to
a grim degree of Orthodox asceticism turned inside out and mixed with Jesuitism. He was
a sort of Isaac the Syrian and Ignatius Loyola of revolutionary socialism, the extremist
form of the revolutionary ascetic denial of the world. Nechaev was, of course, absolutely
sincere, and his fanaticism was of the extremest kind. His was the psychology of the
sectarian. He was prepared to burn his neighbour, but he was ready at any moment to be
burned himself. Nechaev alarmed everybody. Revolutionaries and socialists of all shades
rejected him and found that he was compromising the work of revolution and socialism.
Even Bakunin repudiated Nechaev.
from: Nicolas Berdayev -The Origin Of Russian Communism (1937)
Here are some links to The Catechism of a Revolutionary, written by Nechaev in 1869:
http://for-freedom.ucoz.com/blog/s_g_nechaev_katekhizis_revoljucionera/2010-05-21-2
Thanks to the original posters.
Thanks to the original posters.
In Your Generation (1977) Generation X pay homage to the consequentialism that was the backbone of Nechaev's nihilist philosophy:
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