Feminist/Anti-Feminist Ideas of Maksim Kovalevsky

Abstract

The article considers the feminist and anti-feminist ideas of the Russian historian and sociologist Maksim Kovalevsky. Domestic thinkers largely contributed to the emergence in Russia of feminism as a social phenomenon and the theory of feminism in the history of Russian social thought. The specifics of historical, cultural, legal, economic development influenced the understanding of many issues within the framework of social sciences, including the need to study the "female question" in sociology. The article reflects the results of a theoretical study in which Kovalevsky's ideas about the position of women in society were analyzed. The problem of the status of women in society was noticeably expressed at the turn of the 20th century. Kovalevsky is one of the most famous Russian classical sociologists who contributed to the development of this issue. He created the well-known theory of the family, in the framework of which the position of women in society was considered. In his works, Kovalevsky challenged the idea of some domestic and foreign thinkers about the subordinate position of a woman in society and rather pointed to her relative autonomy in family development, noting the tendency of her gaining more freedom in the future. As a deputy of the I State Duma, Kovalevsky participated in the discussion of the issue of civil equality and the provision of political equality for women. Professor Kovalevsky was directly involved in the organization of higher education for women and in teaching. For Kovalevsky, the question of the position of women was associated with the doctrine of solidarity and the concept of progress. According to the scientist, the emancipation of women is included in the general order of social development. Following the logic of the movement of social progress assumed by Kovalevsky, the position of women in society will change in line with the general trend of growth in the emancipation of the individual.