The problem of justice, one of the key problems of contemporary political philosophy, is reconsidered in the light of a new paradigm: Otfried Höffe’s theory of transcendental exchange. The main research question is how this theory influences our understanding of the ways of formation of just moral and legal grounds in contemporary society. In order to understand justice adequately, it is important to regard it as personal responsibility, deeply related to attitudes of solidarity and recognition. There is an attempt to fuse moral and material grounds of social existence in order to overcome social injustice. Freedom and justice are rooted in the living world and are based on formal norms and procedures of morality and law. This gives us methodological grounds for understanding Höffe’s philosophy of political justice, which regards freedom and justice as the main conditions of human existence.

Societies create cultural models in order to maintain their identity. They constitute a reflection of values and symbols to which they are the most attached. In Russia, there has been a dispute about cultural identity for a long time. During Vladimir Putin’s presidency, when the liberal idea was devalued, a serious debate about the future of Russia was commenced. In contrast to Russia, Poland has always emphasized its European roots and identity of its culture with the Western culture. Comparative studies of the two cultures lead to the conclusion that significant differences are views of: man, freedom and the state. The definition of man in a given culture is associated with the worldview. In Russian culture it has been formulated on the basis of monastic practice and experience of Church Fathers. Hesychasm and deification – are the basis of the Orthodox anthropology. In the contemporary Russian culture one can observe the revival of hesychasm, which stems from the life practice. Latin anthropology was formed under the influence of Saint Augustine’s Confessions. According to Augustine, man is dust and only his „self ”, the person, is endowed with „existence, consciousness and will”. Augustine was the first Latin theologian, who pointed out the historical subjectivity of an individual. Therefore, the European thought identified man with historical ones: the state, nation and economics. The issue of a person’s freedom is the basic issue of Western anthropology. Man perceived himself as an autonomous entity that exists thanks to the autonomous intellect and respects the rights of others adhering to the same principles. Freedom in Orthodox culture is understood as inner freedom from external determinants Saint Augustine formulated a number of problems which are the basis of the Western understanding of the state. The specificity of understanding Augustine’s state is associated with the belief that people are sinful and it has an impact on the state system. Russian state doctrine is connected with Byzantine heritage. The idea of Moscow the Third Rome is a continuation of Byzantine diarchy. The contemporary Russian state thought says that liberal democracy and internationalism are unfamiliar to Russian culture. It finds it necessary to return to the ideocratic country and calls for recovering from the Russian disease of self-consciousness – “occidentalistic rootlessness”.

The notion of „socialism” in political thought of Alexis de Tocqueville

The article presents an analysis of an original conception of socialism outlined in the works of Alexis de Tocqueville. The author begins with a brief presentation of historical context in which the views of French thinker were shaped, referring to his experiences from the period of the July Revolution of 1830 and the February Revolution of 1848. The author goes on to detailed analysis of his definition of socialism, making an indispensable reference to his republican conception of freedom and the role of a citizen in democracy. Finally, the author looks at Tocquevillian vision of genesis of socialist ideas, associated by him with anxiety, which democratic system inevitably generates.

Anti-terrorism policy as a dilemma of liberal democracy

Terrorism is harmful to democratic governments and societies. In addition to the visible and the direct effects of attacks on bystanders, aim bombers are undermining democratic values, including the weakening of confidence in state institutions and laws that regulate their functioning. As a result of the use of violence can permanently give birth to create a socio-political divisions, antagonize certain entities and groups, and thus provoke conflicts thus destroying the existing compromises, agreements or arrangements between the parties concerned. In matters of international terrorism it is not only a challenge for the rule of law, but because it also applies to relations between states, poses a serious threat to security and stability.

In the present paper the author considers a challenge to libertarianism posed by G.A. Cohen. The charge issued by Cohen says that libertarianism defines freedom in terms of justice and justice in terms of freedom. The paper deals with an aspect of this charge as expressed by one of Cohen’s thought experiments according to which it is not the case that the answer to the question whether person B forces person A to do φ depends on whether person B’s actions are legitimate or not. Employing the Hohfeldian analysis of fundamental jural conceptions, the author demonstrates that if person B’s actions are legitimate, then making person A to do φ cannot, at pains of contradiction, be considered forcing. If person B is at a liberty to make person A to do φ, then person B cannot at the same time and in the same respect be at duty not to make person A to do φ. Yet, this is exactly what would follow if we adopted the stance that person B’s legitimate actions force person A to do φ. If they forced person A, then the expenditure of whatever labour needed to do φ would not be a voluntary expenditure and thereby would constitute a violation of person A’s rights to this labour. However, if person A’s rights were violated by person B’s actions, then via Hohfeldian Correlativity Axiom person B would have to be at duty not to undertake these actions. Yet, the whole reasoning started from the assumption that person B is at liberty to undertake them.

The purpose of the article was the analysis of two topics: the freedom and new society in Steiner’s philosophy. Steiner in The Philosophy of Freedom postulates that the world is essentially an indivisible unity. He suggests, that freedom can only be approached gradually with the aid of the creative activity of thinking. The ability to think and act independently is a possibility for modern consciousness. The process of free action also includes the liberation from given (unreflected) natural driver, instincts and the commands of reason or authorities. The free action, are those for which we are fully conscious of the motive. He concludes, that freedom is the spiritual activity of penetrating with consciousness our own nature. The most striking feature of Anthroposophy will be deemed, at first sight, to be the cultivation of the soul’s inward life and the opening of the eyes to a spiritual world. But these doctrines are the foes of real life. The best situation would result if one would give people free way. He has the trust that they would find their direction themselves.

It can be striking for us today that when so little divides us there is still so much that separates us from each other. We observe the fragility of social cohesion and witness the degradation of social capital even though some say that our religious belief as well as material conditions or differences in political rights no longer divide us. In the light of critical observations, one can say that there is a need to reconcile people with each other, to establish bonds between us, that we need to establish civil society. When trying to establish a well-functioning civil society we have to ask ourselves a few crucial questions. These questions include: How can Western individualism be combined with the values of community and social solidarity? What are the necessary conditions for freedom and solidarity among people? To answer these questions it is worth reaching the philosophical thought of John Dewey and Roberto Unger. In his text Roberto Unger points out that today’s social and political order is not something solid and stable. Even our democratic order that I was referring to in this paper faces challenges that may undermine its base. Without the right preparation to face these challenges-through responsible and critical public participation and deliberation-it is possible that instead of us having some sort of possibility of steering the growth of our societies and having an impact on political and economic evolution, the evolving situations will steer us. If this happens, we will be left behind, being unable to grasp and handle the different new situations.

Isaiah Berlin said that it is part of the human condition to make choices between absolute values. Obviously, this choice cannot be easy. To be well informed, it has to be made in full awareness of the contingency of our criteria. This ability to make choices between absolute values in the light of contingencies is what distinguishes a civilized man from a barbarian, says Berlin, following Joseph Schumpeter. Similar ideas can be found in the philosophy of Richard Rorty, who believes that our liberal societies create more people who understand the contingencies of their vocabularies, but at the same time are still faithful to them. He calls this “freedom as acknowledgement of contingency.” This freedom is bound by the existence of a plurality of voices, which does not mean that it is bound by the existence of chaos. In such a spirit, Jürgen Habermas emphasizes the fact that in spite of the plurality of contingent views, we can find a unity of reason. In spite of plurality of views, we can still come to an agreement thanks to dialogue. The close analysis of Rorty’s and Habermas’s philosophy allows us to see that they share a common stance: thanks to disenchantment of the world, as Rorty says, or thanks to decentralization of the world, as Habermas says. Both are seeing such stance as a precondition to use our freedom in a way to be more tolerant, more open to dialogue and responsible for it. Further analysis allows us to see that there is a possibility to present a new understanding of the notion of freedom-freedom conceived as responsibility.

The right to assembly is a manifestation of the social possibility of influencing state organs by loud and often expressive articulation of the position of a given social group on issues important to it. It should be clearly emphasized that the right to peaceful assembly is a manifestation of freedom and is one of the core guarantees of pluralism, freedom of speech and the nation’s right to decide about self, which one considers a sovereign. Detailed rules and procedures for organizing, conducting and dissolving assemblies have been regulated in the Act of July 24, 2015 of the Act of Assembly Law2. The basic concept – the concept of assembly – has been defined in the Art. 3 of Act of the Assembly Law. According to the adopted systematics, two types of assembly were distinguished: ordinary and spontaneous. The first of these means “a grouping of persons in an open space accessible to unspecified persons in a specific place organized in order to carry our joint deliberations or for joint expression of public opinion”. The organization of the meeting can be practically unlimited. The only requirement is having full legal capacity, which excludes persons partially deprived of legal capacity, regardless of the scope of such limitation and the relationship with the subject of the organized meeting. The process of organizing assemblies is not complicated, although one should be particularly careful about the deadlines and keep in mind the “privileged status” of some other forms of assemblies. The amendment to the Act of 2016 introduced new legal solutions, although definition issues were omitted, which in this case are of fundamental importance for the correct application of the Act and guaranteeing observance of constitutional norms by public administration bodies.

A much needed history awareness lesson for students. National tradition and the present day

This article focuses on the reflections from the period of lockdown and the risks brought by Covid-19 during Spring 2020. History is one of the key subjects that have a significant impact on the shaping of attitudes in a society, as well setting goals for the future, as well as the young. Historians teach how to interpret the past, important facts and essential universal values, and creativity in the pursuit of knowledge. The school education system should be open and implement a model based on showcasing different views and social phenomena. This is where the teachers and history lessons focus their efforts and work towards that common goal. The school education system allows the use of various sources of knowledge, teaching how to critically assess its content. It allows you to step beyond the textbook and support the formation of social awareness in the young generation.

Dilemmas of Freedom and their Legal Implications

Each legal institution begins from an idea, therefore a thought is primary in relation to the legal norm created by the legislator. This makes the analysis of this idea is significant and cannot be ignored. Freedom is one of the fundamental rights guaranteed by the contemporary constitutionalism. The article is an analysis of the philosophical and legal understanding of the concept of freedom and the ways of its transfer to the law. The author claims that the concept of freedom is a vague concept for a European lawyer, on the foundation of which it is difficult to build a legal system. On the one hand, this concept seems familiar and it is difficult to directly deny it, but its definition, and even more so, the adoption of the consequences associated with this definition is debatable.

The ongoing globalization of mass media offers ample opportunities for citizen debate and pluralism of thought. One of the recent world media trends is the creation of different models of public media, which are an alternative to other means of communication. Public media might address issues of contemporary journalism, namely the quality and independence of media, ensuring that citizens receive accurate and impartial information. Ukraine has undergone tremendous changes since it has gained independence in 1991 but the political and legal systems remain unduly centralized, the economy weak, and the government attempts to limit freedom of speech and work of media. During both the Orange Revolution in 2004 and the Euromaidan 2013–2014, the need to deepen democratic freedoms was emphasized. Major advocates of the reform called for strengthening the rule of law, decentralization, denationalization of media, and the establishment of community media in the country, which will be created by the society, serve the society, and work under its control. Measures to increase the diversity of Ukrainian media are one of the practical means to guarantee freedom of speech and diversity of viewpoints. The diversity of media includes not only the diversity of content and multiplicity of media owners but also the variety of media types. Along with traditional models of public service media and private commercial broadcasting, community media emerged as the “third level” of media development that enhances freedom of speech. This article examines the legal aspects of community media implementation in Ukraine, their compliance with the standards and principles of the media law of European countries that govern the media community, and illustrates the development of community broadcasting in the world. It also provides an overview of the international standards for community media, which are backed by legislatures and regulators. Analyzing the Ukrainian media legislative draft, the author of the article offers improvements to the content and funding of community media in Ukraine.

Otfried Hoeffe’s philosophy of political justice

The paper covers an issue of justice in the light of a new paradigm in political philosophy proposed by Otfried Hoeffe’s theory of the exchange of justice. The author analyses the impact of this approach to justice upon understanding of how could contemporary society develop its fair moral and legal grounds. It is proved that for an adequate understanding of justice is its understanding as a personal responsibility, organically related to guidance on solidarity and recognition. Their interpretations of as well attempts to join moral and material grounds of social life to overcome of injustice are in the author’s focus. It is showed that freedom and justice are enrooted in a lifeword, as well relay upon formal norms and procedures of moral and justice. It gives a methodology for understanding of O. Hoeffe’s philosophy of political justice that states freedom and justice as basic conditions of human being.

What kind of freedom? The dilemma of democracy

Since the ancient times there has been a continuing discourse on the nature and scope of freedom and civic and human right in the more or less liberal democracy. This paper contains a critical analysis and assessment of the most important opinions concerning the both political and economic freedom and the interpretations of that concept in the political practice. This article argues that, contrary to the beliefs of most people, freedom and human rights do not come from nature, but they are the result of the society’s consensus, especially that part of the society, which participates in the elections. The voters agree to allow the winning political party to realize its program also in the respect to freedom and civic (human) rights. On the other hand the politicians try to secure the appropriate equilibrium between the political and economic freedom, which supports the stabilization of a given political system and is conducive to the economic growth.

The purpose of this article is to present Hugo Grotius’s views concerning the idea of freedom. It must be pointed out that the idea of freedom was not the subject of a separate thought, except for the freedom of the seas, which Grotius dedicated a separate work. Theses on freedom were formulated in the light of other issues such as natural law or the essence and scope of state power. For this purpose, the first part of the article presents a historical background. In the second part, Grotius’s views will be presented in three contexts. First, freedom of the individual as power over oneself. Second, freedom in political terms, as a relationship of community. Finally freedom in the global aspect, as freedom of navigation, trade and migration.

Feminist deconstruction of the traditional image of women in Qiu Jin’s works

Women’s issues are a significant subject of study in the realm of Chinese literature. In many works, it can be seen to oppose stereotypes or norms imposed on the female gender and to take measures leading to the emancipation of the individual. Such literature is symptomatic of a desire for change in society, that is, the overthrow of the patriarchal system and the introduction of equal rights between the sexes. An example of such prose is the works of China’s first feminist, Qiu Jin, who decided to fight for women’s rights. She was sentenced to death for her revolutionary activities. However, her texts introduced a completely new image of women into the public sphere - different from the one that had been reproduced for hundreds of years in ancient China. The poet chose to endow her heroines with charisma, courage, intelligence and the will to fight for a better life. Her aim was to make women aware of their situation in life, their social role, and to encourage them to leave the male-dominated world. Michalina Koniuk, in the chapter “Feminist Deconstruction of the Traditional Image of Woman in Qiu Jin’s Works”, proposes to analyse Qiu Jin’s works and present that the characters created by the writer oppose and destroy the image of the obedient and uneducated woman that existed in ancient China. First, the social role imposed on women in Chinese society has been described, namely that of obedient daughter, wife and daughter-in-law. The requirements and rules expected of Chinese women have been presented, and how Confucian norms contributed to the belittling of women’s role and position in Chinese society. As the poet was inspired by her own life experiences, Qiu Jin’s life were briefly introduced. Her childhood, during which the first signs of dissatisfaction with the obligations and social norms imposed on girls could be observed. An unsuccessful marriage mobilised the feminist to fight for women’s rights, to oppose the doctrines of Confucius and to leave home and go abroad. This was a great act of courage and at the same time a struggle for freedom and independence in the life of a feminist. That part was followed by an analysis of Qiu Jin’s works, whose female characters exemplify the kind of norms and behaviours that Qiu Jin rebelled against. At the same time, these characters deconstruct the traditional image of a woman and introduce a new one of a strong and independent individual. In this chapter, all poems and quotations have been translated by the author from Chinese into Polish.

Between the Left and the Right, or Should We Be Afraid of the Truth and Praise Postmodernism?

Should we be afraid of the truth? This question is important not only for the world of philosophy, but also politics. Reluctance to fixed and immutable foundation used to characterize the left . This right has traditionally appealed to what is permanent, unchanging, universal, in what social order should be rooted. And for that it is criticized. It has been suggested that we should reject the right-wing chains, reject universalism, to become free and head toward postmodernism. Postmodernism today seems to give hope for further development, including policy based on new narratives – particularly left-wing. Postmodernism, as it is seen by Grzegorz Lewicki, seems to be close to the critical theory that can help us in the liberation and emancipation. Closer analysis, however, allows us to see that also in critical theory there is a desire to discover the truth about what is reality. It also allows to see that the category of truth is not as bad as it is painted. It is not necessary to get rid of the reference to the category of truth, because truth is not the problem in itself. We can still keep it without sacrificing what was the best in postmodernism. If we are successful, then there might be the chance to reconcile the left with the right.

The article deals with post-modern approach and philosophical thinking and its relation to pluralism. Its manifestation together with globality can be seen at various types of educational projects and schools (reformatory, alternative) and views of liberation of teachers, pupils and their parents to freedom and full humanness.

The outlined problems allow forming an idea and understanding of how modern society perceives and constructs political and ideological foundations. By examining the definition of new paradigms, the author expands knowledge of how contemporary forces such as globalization, migration, and military conflict shape the perspectives of individuals and communities. This study examines the reinterpretation of traditional ideologies and political concepts in the context of new realities. The author considers the impact of globalization on the formation of ideological foundations and the role of citizenship in this context. The impact of geopolitics on modern political philosophy is analyzed, highlighting how global relations and conflicts shape political views. The author notes that ideological political concepts in the 21st century are determined by the complexity of the modern global political landscape and responses to new challenges. The concepts emphasize the importance of global cooperation and shared values, offering an open and transnational vision of the political order; advocate the preservation of sovereignty and cultural identity, rejecting some of the globalization trends in favor of protecting domestic interests; are aimed at the protection of individual rights and freedoms, as well as the support of humanitarian values such as equality and justice; combine ecology and politics, reflecting the desire for sustainable development and solving environmental problems at the level of political strategies. Attention is drawn to the geostrategic aspects of defining national ideologies and the influence of global forces on domestic political processes. The author examines the challenges arising from civilizational oppression, focusing on environmental issues, migration problems and international conflicts. The significance of these challenges for the development of new political concepts and strategies is analyzed. Modern political philosophy questions existing structures and seeks alternative ways of managing society, as well as defining goals and values that should contribute to sustainable development. In-depth reflection on the ethical aspects of politics in the modern world also occupies an important place within the framework of the study. From issues of justice and equality to understanding the relationship between society and nature, the research aims to explore sound and innovative concepts for solving today’s challenges. This article stands out for its relevance and variety of approaches to the consideration of ideologies and political philosophy, contributing to a deeper understanding of modern challenges and the search for new paradigms in political philosophical thinking.

The authors of this article attempt to describe in detail the determinants and structure of the beliefs and views of Polish society on a liberal to anti-liberal values continuum. The first research objective was to determine the extent of social and economic freedom that respondents expect in their relations with others and in their relations with state institutions. In addition, the authors wanted to identify the socio-demographic characteristics that significantly differentiate these liberal orientations, as well as the factors that independently determine the adoption of liberal views. The detailed hypotheses were verified based on an analysis of data collected in a nationwide telephone survey (CATI) conducted on a representative sample of 1,000 adult Polish citizens. The survey used an original questionnaire consisting of 31 quantitative scales, which were used to construct the Liberalism/Libertarianism Index (LLI) and to categorize respondents into “Polish Liberals” and “Polish Libertarians.” Higher index values indicate stronger and more consistent liberal attitudes in economic as well as axiological (social) terms. More liberal orientations were found to be held by respondents declaring higher incomes, younger, better educated, and less religious, although only age, some party preferences, and religious practices act as independent predictors of LLI.