True and false values in M. A. Bulgakov's novel "The Master and Margarita". False Values
Stages, conditions and incentives for the development of the team
The team, as a group of people, is a collection of individuals - carriers of associative characteristics, interacting with each other to achieve a common goal by effectively balancing individual personal characteristics.
In its development, the team goes through several stages.
The first stage is the formation stage. :
A team is born when a group of individuals come together to achieve a common goal. Initially, team members are unfamiliar with each other and do not know if they can work together at all, so they experience uncertainty both about solving the problem itself and about their relationship. It takes time to figure this out.
Relationships in the team at this time are indecisive: at first, team members maintain a distance in order to feel safe, and show only good qualities in order to please others.
At this stage, people look closely at each other and at the leader, acting by the "trial and error" method. The ties between them are still weak and unstable, comradely contacts often change. Often there are conflicts due to misunderstandings. It must be emphasized that if at this stage the leader does not show reasonable firmness in the organization of the team, then the “buildup” may be delayed. Team members are not yet ready to take responsibility, and tend to wait until the manager himself distributes roles, tasks and initiates group actions.
At this stage, the team is characterized by low performance, as its members experience uncertainty in their actions, and the energy of the group is absorbed by the process of establishing relationships and searching for methods of cooperation. The sooner this is over, the faster the process of team development will go.
The goal must be the guiding force, the core of development. She mobilizes the team. Each of its members must also be clearly aware of the significance of their work. The more complex and prestigious the task before them, the easier it is to unite people to solve it. Moreover, the meaning of the goal should be understood not only logically, but also passed through the heart. In this case, its achievement will be the work of each member of the team.
Psychologists have established that if goals or requirements come from the leader, then they are perceived by subordinates as external. If they are put forward and supported by their own comrades, then the collective considers such goals and requirements as their own, and they influence individuals much more strongly.
One of the conditions for successful progress towards the intended goal is discipline. This is also why, at the first stage of the formation of a team, a leader can use an authoritarian management style with strict performance discipline. This style is characterized by the fact that the leader himself develops requirements for subordinates and strictly monitors the implementation of given orders. Therefore, the very first task of the manager is to explain what to do to whom, allocate resources and establish the rules by which team members will work. If necessary, encouraging and punishing subordinates, he may not consult with anyone, taking full responsibility for the decisions made.
There are many ways to speed up the processes of personal acquaintance between people, their disclosure of their life values and beliefs, their worries, hopes, etc. Not bad it is carried out through a joint vacation. In general, the sooner team members get to know each other intimately, the sooner effective collaboration can begin.
The second stage is the positioning stage.
It is characterized by the fact that the study of each other is almost completed in the team and the personal positions of each member are determined. Many teams go through this period of upheaval, when the manager's contribution is critically assessed, cliques are formed, and differences between them are expressed more openly. Personal relationships become more important, the strengths and weaknesses of individuals come to light, the team begins to discuss ways to achieve agreement and tries to improve relationships. At the same time, one can observe a power struggle for leadership.
With proper development, the team quickly passes the first stage. Members of the team become dependent on each other, and not on the leader. The second stage is often conflicting and is known as the "storm". Irritations and resentments, hidden earlier due to the distancing of people, are brought out, taking the form of conflicts. However, this phase of the development of an effective team is of conceptual importance, since previously hidden internal motives, interests and aspirations of the members of the immature team distracted them from solving the main task to try to take a better position, gain power, etc. Their exit to the outside allows you to quickly overcome this barrier. "Storm" has the following characteristics:
Behind the scenes manifestation of negative emotions, aggression, reproaches, accusations or just grumbling at everyone (sarcastic, sarcastic remarks, often disguised as jokes or teasing, rarely expressed directly to the opponent, taking the form of indirect accusations and allusions);
Dissatisfaction with the manager: tyrant, his methods are too authoritarian;
Prosperity of intrigues, factions and civil strife.
At this stage, the leader must be aware of what is happening, and not turn a blind eye to everything. This is the maturation phase of the team. Unfortunately, some organizations stop at this stage forever.
A real leader must take advantage of the energy of the "storm". He must:
Make everyone "show their cards";
Set an example with courtesy, justice, care, equanimity;
To force people to express their dissatisfaction in the face of each other;
Encourage everyone to look for positive solutions to the problems that have arisen; - resolve internal conflicts by identifying their causes;
Implement norms and rules of mutual communication within the team;
Teach people to listen and respect each other, to ethically correct each other if they violate established norms.
Thus, on the basis of common values and interests, a single micro-social environment of the team is gradually being formed, and a corporate culture is being formed. The task of the leader at this stage is to create a core of like-minded people. In the process of these transformations, the leader can move from an authoritarian (directive) leadership style to a collegial (democratic) one, which is characterized by the desire to raise as many questions as possible for discussion by the team.
The third stage is the unification stage.
It is characterized by the fact that intellectual, emotional and volitional unity gradually arises in the team.
Intellectual unity is determined by the awareness of all members of the capabilities of the team, mutual understanding and psychological compatibility of individuals in the process of work, the desire to find a common language, develop a common opinion.
Emotional unity is distinguished by an atmosphere of empathy by all employees of events taking place in the team and outside it, concern for the fate of comrades, and a manifestation of sensitivity towards them. Not a single person in such a team feels isolated and defenseless, everyone is sure that he will not be left alone in trouble.
The unity of will is manifested in the ability of the team to overcome the difficulties and obstacles that arise and to bring the matter to the end, as well as in the ability of each to subordinate personal interests to the public.
Thus, at this stage, relations of comradely cooperation and mutual assistance are finally established in the team. This is especially facilitated by the communication of people outside the production sphere, for example, joint leisure activities.
At the third stage, not only the leader, but all employees feel responsible for the activities of the team. The manager completely switches to a democratic style of management and, holding business meetings, tries, together with employees, to find optimal solutions to production and other problems. The leader begins to act not as standing above the team, but as a member of the team, endowed with the functions of leadership. If at the first stage the leader is perceived by his subordinates as an external force in relation to them, then at the third stage he acts as an authoritative representative and spokesman for the interests of the team.
The fourth stage is the maturity stage.
The team gains experience in successfully solving problems and using resources. The emphasis is on the correct use of time and on the clarification of tasks. Employees become proud of their belonging to the “winning team”. They look at problems realistically and solve them creatively. In a developed team, there are strong bonds between its members. People are accepted and judged on their merits, not on their claims. Relationships are mostly informal. Personal differences are quickly resolved. The team is able to show excellent results in work.
The leader can switch to a passive leadership style. To do this, he needs to encourage the initiative of group members in developing effective methods of work, partially cede to the group his decision-making authority, the distribution of roles and tasks, and so on, while delivering the authority necessary to perform common tasks in accordance with the needs of the entire organization.
To achieve the maturity of the team, the leader must initially ensure that each of its members understands and accepts the ideas and tasks of the team. Therefore, the participation of the group in the formation of its goals (mission) is a decisive factor in achieving ultimate success.
Many managers experience difficulties here, but if this is not done, the team will remain in a state of dependence on the leader, which will hinder the manifestation of collective creativity and cooperation.
The leader must be able to anticipate the onset of the next stage of development (maturity) of the team and lead everyone forward to new opportunities. This will avoid the occurrence of growth conflicts. With the improvement of the quality of the work of the team, the opportunities for introducing innovations in the management process are also expanding. Different employees can supervise this or that task in turn, depending on their experience. The delegation of authority is expanding, more people are involved in planning and decision-making. The manager helps the team go through all stages of development and reach its full potential, using personal example and authority for this.
Ways to overcome difficulties that impede the effective development of teams
On the way to maturity and efficiency, the team may suddenly find that growth has stalled. One of the symptoms of the restrictions that have appeared is a low level of desire for change and their low results. It is useful to analyze the most typical mistakes, because, having understood them, it is easier to solve the problems of the team.
Leader incompetence.
Leadership is perhaps the most important factor in determining the quality of a team's work. A leader who does not want to take a team approach or who lacks the ability to use this style of leadership will suppress any initiative aimed at building a team.
A good leader always pays special attention and shows by personal example how to bring issues to a complete solution. There are several components to success. Effective leader:
Honest in relation to the beliefs of other people, and they also consider him honest;
Uses delegation of authority as a means to achieve the goal and develop the team;
Has clear and equal evaluation criteria for all subordinates;
Willing and able to give and receive trust and loyalty in return;
Is able to perceive the hopes, fears and needs of his employees, respects their dignity;
Honestly and directly faces the facts;
Encourages the development of each group and each individual;
Establishes and maintains effective work practices;
He tries to make sure that the work is a source of satisfaction and inspiration for everyone.
Low qualification of employees.
The collective is more than the sum of individual gifts.
We need a balanced composition of employees who can work together. In any team there is a need to perform a variety of functions, and the analysis of these "roles" helps to create a balanced and full-blooded team. It is possible to single out: "supplier of ideas", "analyst", "organizer", "critic" and several "performers". It happens that each employee takes on one or more of the listed roles. If there is no one to play a role, then the team has to fill this gap.
If the members of the team lack basic skills, then useful results are unlikely to be obtained. It is necessary to achieve a combination of professional and human qualities, which together only allow you to successfully cope with the work.
The team is a means for the development of each employee.
When new employees enter, it is important that they are included in the business with understanding, but firmly. The team must make demands, and the new employee must understand that it will not work here somehow. Each employee should feel their involvement as a privilege.
Developed employees can be identified by the following features:
Energetic;
Knows how to cope with his emotions;
Ready to express your opinion openly;
Expresses his opinion well;
Can change the point of view under the influence of arguments, but not force.
Unconstructive social climate.
It often turns out that people of different ages, with very different backgrounds, with different values and life plans, are united in a team. This can objectively lead to difficulties in the formation of a constructive social climate.
The dedication of employees to the tasks of teams is one of the signs of a positive climate. Team loyalty needs to be developed consciously, as it rarely arises on its own until each of the employees individually decides to direct their energy towards collective goals.
The growth of devotion is an indicator of the maturity of the team. Emotional bonds between employees are strengthened and they are better able to actively pursue joint goals, and ownership is highly gratifying. Warmth arises in the team, combining directness and honesty with concern for the welfare of everyone.
A collective approach encourages everyone to be an individual.
Another important aspect of collectivism is support. In this case, the team allows each individual to feel stronger and more confident. If disagreements arise between employees, then it is better to speak about them publicly. When important issues remain unspoken, the climate in the team becomes defensive: people hide their views, preferring to be comfortable, rather than natural and useful to the common cause.
Lack of clarity of goals.
The first step to success is to understand what you are striving for. A capable and mature team of people is usually able to achieve a goal if everyone is clear about the desired results. Collective members are more likely to devote themselves to a goal if they share it and consider it to some extent their own goal. Achieving such agreement is not easy, but, judging by experience, this is an essential prerequisite for successful teamwork.
If there is no clear vision of the goal, then, as a result, individual members of the team cannot contribute to the overall success. Even when the goals are clear to everyone, it is important to find a compromise between personal and collective interests.
An effective team enables each employee to satisfy their personal interests and contribute to the realization of collective interests.
Collective and individual deli need to change over time. There are many examples of teams having clear goals in the beginning but paying the price for their inability to adjust them later. A team that looks ahead, foresees difficulties, uses all opportunities, and specifies goals depending on the accumulated experience. Such a team will eventually succeed.
Ineffective working methods.
Smart working methods and an effective decision-making process are necessary for any team. The following questions deserve special attention:
How decisions are made;
What are the methods of collecting and presenting information;
What are the relationships within and outside the team;
Is the efficiency of resource management high?
Has a decision analysis process been developed;
How new tasks are evaluated;
What are the criteria for measuring effectiveness.
In a good team, the methods of work are honed to such an extent that they become an informal, but strict discipline. People learn to apply qualitative criteria to their actions. Individual employees acquire personal skills that are generally recognized and used in the team. The meetings have a spirit of competence and are rarely boring. The team moves forward quickly, with a high level of personal attention and ease of communication ensuring that all relevant conflict situations are quickly resolved.
Lack of openness and confrontation.
To succeed, team members must be able to express their opinions about each other, discuss disagreements and problems without fear of being ridiculous and without fear of revenge. If team members are unwilling to express their views, then a lot of energy, effort and creativity is wasted. In effective teams, sensitive and unpleasant issues are not avoided, but they are taken on honestly and directly.
A clash of views, if directed properly and used constructively, leads to increased understanding among employees. The result of positive conflict is openness, easing of tension, improved relations and increased trust. Distrust and hostility grow out of negative conflicts.
Unconstructive relationships with colleagues.
At work, you usually have to deal with other teams, but sometimes the quality of such interaction is low. Quite often, communications are unsatisfactory, common goals are not enough.
Speaking about their work, managers often use terms from the field of sports: "play for a win", "score points", determine the "style of play". These expressions show what people think about their work and what mental images they use to explain what is happening.
The team leader has a special role to play in strengthening ties with other teams, and he can do much to prevent hostility and create cooperation.
Team development indicators
The average development cycle of the team is ambiguous, it ranges from 5 to 15 years. It depends primarily on the nature of the work.
Indicators of the development of the team, the degree of its integration is coherence and cohesion.
Harmony characterizes the consistency of the actions of workers within the framework of their specific production activities. Teamwork is especially important for people who are closely connected in the course of work: for aircraft crews, teams of surgeons, etc.
Well-being indicators:
1) the successful activity of the team (specific results with a minimum of effort to achieve them),
2) satisfaction derived from joint work.
Cohesion characterizes the psychological closeness of the members of the team, based on the consistency of people's positions in relation to the most significant issues for their lives.
The indicators of cohesion are the same as the indicators of harmony, but when solving not only business, but also personal problems.
Harmony and cohesion arise only at certain stages of the development of teams. In this case, two forms of interconnection and relations between people arise: business (authority, desire to work together), personal (likes and dislikes).
A necessary condition for the normal development of the team is well-organized joint activities of people, which directly depends on the quality of team leadership. The main integrators of the team are: common goals. Common interests that arise in addition to work, the resolution of complex conflict situations.
Effective interaction of people in a team is possible only with a minimum of emotional and psychological costs to achieve results. In this case, subjective and objective difficulties may arise.
The main objective difficulty in relation to the team is the low quality of leadership with all the ensuing consequences.
Subjective difficulties are more diverse:
1) high conceit of some employees, their disrespectful attitude towards others,
2) unwillingness or inability of team members to understand each other, to listen to the interlocutor,
3) lack of skills of joint decision-making, development of a common point of view,
4) purely human characteristics of the members of the team, including: situational (fatigue, illness, etc.) and stable (temperament, character, upbringing).
False organizational values
The previously discussed values of the team, such as: stability, dynamism, coherence, cohesion, and others belong to the group of true values. At the same time, there are always false values in the collectives. Let's consider two types of false intra-organizational values, the presence of which must be taken into account by the leader.
Many studies have shown that people who are only engaged in ensuring the effectiveness of leadership, there is a desire to appropriate the role of leader. Whatever this desire may be caused, it indicates that in organizations there is an independent value of leadership as such, that is, the right to dispose and authorize without making decisions. It is especially developed among workers close to managers, namely: secretaries, referents, etc.
This value brings to life the opposite, associated value - organizational conformity or obedience, which outwardly disguise itself as diligence and discipline.
Moreover, these two false values develop more strongly, the more instrumental (formal) the organization is.
Sociological studies show that leaders in words usually highly value the initiative and innovation of their subordinates, but in practice they prefer to see people who are loyal and obedient next to them. This gives rise to an objective inconsistency of true and false values, the possibility of conflicts arising on this basis as well.
Each person in his life has his own category of values, and in accordance with it he lives and is defined as a person in society. For some, these are material values, for others, spiritual ones. And unfortunately for each of us and for society as a whole, the category of the former is growing, and the category of the latter is decreasing. And more and more often you can hear the sad sighs of the elderly: "But in our time it was not like that ...". What is the reason for such a reassessment of values in society?
Let's remember the works on which our fathers and mothers, grandparents grew up - these were the works of the classics: Turgenev, Pushkin, Lermontov, Gogol, Chekhov, Tolstoy and other wonderful poets and writers. The sublime images and characters of the main characters encouraged us to imitate them in their loyalty, masculinity, culture of communication, subtle humor, developed in us the correct concepts of duty and honor; exposed and ridiculed such character traits as hypocrisy, deceit, servility, sycophancy, infidelity, betrayal and much more.
If we now open almost any printed publication of fiction, any magazine, or newspaper, turn on the TV or go to the cinema, what do we see? Everything that was previously considered vile, shameful and unacceptable in society is now flourishing and even advertised for a normal lifestyle and behavior. And all those true values, such as honesty, decency, duty, fidelity, and others are considered outdated and not fashionable concepts of backward people.
Today, adherents of lack of culture loudly proclaim: "We must live in step with the times," and they assert their category of values. And, unfortunately, the first place in this category is occupied by money, and for the sake of money, people today go to deceit, all kinds of lies, and even more serious crimes.
One person said, “Who caused the most deaths? Because of Hitler, Stalin? No, meet Benjamin Franklin on the $100 bill. Of course, we understand the irony of this statement, but unfortunately this category of human value completely depersonalizes him, making him cruel, envious, deceitful, hypocritical, and so on. The Bible very clearly says that the root of all evil is the love of money.
You can often hear indignation at the new laws in the country, the activities of the government, but if you think about it - what makes up my scale of values. Maybe better start with yourself and look at what books I read, what programs I watch, what movies I like, in the end, why I love my husband or wife and whether I love them at all. There used to be a very common saying: "Tell me who your friends are, and I will tell you who you are." It has not lost its relevance today. Someone said that never before has a person been alone, as in the 21st century. But each of us seems to have mobile phones filled with a list of so-called friends. I say "so-called" because they are not actually friends. We need them or they need us, we get some kind of mutually beneficial cooperation from each other and nothing more. If something happens to me, no one will remember why? Yes, because no one will need me.
One man got into a car accident and became disabled in a wheelchair, his wife left him; a blind child was born in another family, he was sent to an orphanage; in another family, the son became a drug addict and his parents abandoned him and kicked him out of the house. And where is mercy, kindness, fidelity, revenue, mutual assistance, parental or filial duty?
One can cite dozens and hundreds of examples of such human tragedies that the world is filled with today due to the fact that people choose the wrong values for themselves, which in fact are not.
So, the future of our children depends on what we choose today. And if our category of values is money, position in society, fame, greatness, etc., then do not be surprised if tomorrow your children consider you superfluous and send you to a nursing home; or, even worse, they will visit you only at your funeral in order to inherit your home and property.
1) I. Bunin in the story "Sir from San Francisco" showed the fate of a man who served false values. Wealth was his god, and that god he worshipped. But when the American millionaire died, it turned out that true happiness passed by the person: he died without knowing what life is.
2) The name of a simple peasant girl Joan of Arc everyone knows today. For 75 years, France waged an unsuccessful war against the English invaders. Jeanne believed that it was she who was destined to save France. The young peasant woman persuaded the king to give her a small detachment and was able to do what the smartest military leaders could not do: she set people on fire with her violent faith. After years of ignominious defeats, the French were finally able to defeat the invaders.
When you reflect on this truly wonderful event, you understand how important it is for a person to be guided by a great goal.
3) Few people know that during the filming of a famous film N. Mikhalkov "Burnt by the Sun", The weather deteriorated, the temperature dropped to minus six. Meanwhile, according to the scenario, there should be a sultry summer. Actors portraying vacationers had to swim in icy water, lie on cold ground. This example shows that art requires sacrifice from a person, complete dedication.
4) French writer G. Flaubert in the novel "Madam Bovary"Told about the fate of a lonely woman who, entangled in life's contradictions, decided to poison herself. The writer himself felt the signs of poisoning and was forced to seek help. It was not by chance that he later said: “Madam Bovary is me.”
5) Loyalty to one's vocation cannot but command respect. Narodovolets Nikolai Kibalchich was sentenced to death for attempting to assassinate the king. While waiting to die, he worked on a jet engine project. More than his own life, he was concerned about the fate of the invention. When they came for him to take him to the place of execution, Kibalchich gave the gendarme the drawings of the spacecraft and asked them to hand them over to the scientists. “It is touching that a person before a terrible execution has the strength to think about humanity!” - this is how K. Tsiolkovsky wrote about this spiritual feat.
6) “I was always amazed at the immense diligence and patience of Kirill Lavrov,” director Vladimir Bortko recalls of the outstanding actor: “We had to film a 22-minute conversation between Yeshua and Pontius Pilate, such scenes are filmed for two weeks. On the set, Lavrov, an 80-year-old man, spent 16 hours in a 12 kg chest armor without saying a word of reproach to the film crew.
Problems:
The moral responsibility of a person (artist, scientist) for the fate of the world
The role of personality in history
The moral choice of man
The conflict of man and society
Human and nature
Affirming theses:
1. A person comes into this world not to say what he is, but to make it better.
2. It depends on each person what the world will be like: light or dark, good or evil.
3. Everything in the world is connected by invisible threads, and a careless act, an inadvertent word can result in the most unpredictable consequences.
4. Remember your High human responsibility!
Quotes:
1. There is one undoubted sign that divides the actions of people into good and evil: the act increases the love and unity of people - it is good; he produces enmity and separation - he is bad (L. Tolstoy, Russian writer).
2. The world in itself is neither evil nor good, it is a receptacle for both, depending on what you yourself turned it into (M. Montaigne, French humanist philosopher).
3. Yes - I'm in the boat. The spill will not touch me! But how can I live when my people are drowning? (Saadi, Persian writer and thinker)
4. It is easier to light one small candle than to curse the darkness (Confucius, an ancient Chinese thinker).
6. Love - and do what you want (Augustine the Blessed, Christian thinker).
7. Life is a struggle for immortality (M. Prishvin, Russian writer).
8. They went into darkness, but their trace did not disappear (W. Shakespeare, English writer).
Arguments:
Everyone has in their hands fate peace
1) In a combat operation near Pervomaisk, the fighters who were repulsing the attack of the militants rushed to the box with grenades. But when they opened it, they found that the grenades had no fuses. The packer at the factory forgot to put them in, and without them, a grenade is just a piece of iron. The soldiers, suffering heavy losses, were forced to retreat, and the militants broke through. The mistake of a nameless person turned into a terrible disaster.
2) Historians write that the Turks were able to capture Constantinople by going through a gate that someone forgot to close.
3) The twentieth century is the first century in the history of mankind of world wars, the century of the creation of weapons of mass destruction. There is an incredible situation: humanity can destroy itself. In Hiroshima, on the monument to the victims of the atomic bombing, it is written: "Sleep well, the mistake will not happen again." So that this and many other mistakes are not repeated, the struggle for peace, the struggle against weapons of mass destruction, acquires a universal character.
4) Sowed evil turns into new evil. In the Middle Ages, a legend appeared about a city that was filled with rats. The townspeople did not know where to get away from them. One man promised to rid the city of vile creatures if he was paid. The residents, of course, agreed. The rat-catcher began to play his pipe, and the rats, bewitched by the sounds, followed him. The sorcerer took them to the river, got into the boat, and the rats drowned. But the townspeople, having got rid of the misfortune, refused to pay the promised. Then the sorcerer took revenge on the city: he again played the pipe, children came running from all over the city, and he drowned them in the river.
The role of personality in history
1) "Notes of a hunter" by I. Turgenev played a huge role in the social life of our country. People, having read bright, bright stories about peasants, understood that it is immoral to own people like cattle. A broad movement began in the country for the abolition of serfdom.
2) After the war, many Soviet soldiers who were captured by the enemy were condemned as traitors to their homeland. Story M. Sholokhov "The fate of man", which shows the bitter fate of a soldier, forced society to take a different look at the tragic fate of prisoners of war. A law was passed on their rehabilitation.
3) American writer G. Beecher Stowe wrote a novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin" which told of the fate of a mild-mannered Negro who was beaten to death by a ruthless planter. This novel stirred up the whole society, the Civil War broke out in the country, and shameful slavery was abolished. Then they said that this little woman started a big war.
4) It is unlikely that King Edward III of England fully understood what his audacity would lead to: he depicted delicate lilies on the state emblem. Thus, the English king showed that from now on, neighboring France is also subject to him. This drawing of a power-hungry monarch became the pretext for the Hundred Years War, which brought countless disasters to people.
Human and nature
1) Before our eyes, man is continuing the fateful work that he began millennia ago: in the name of the needs of his production, he destroyed the forests filled with life, dehydrated and turned entire continents into deserts. After all, the Sahara and Kara Kum are obvious evidence of the criminal activity of man, which continues to this day. Isn't the pollution of the oceans a testament to this? Man deprives himself in the near future of the last necessary food resources.
2) In Russian folk tales, the unselfishness of man is often glorified. Emelya was not going to catch a pike - she herself got into his bucket. If a wanderer sees a fallen chick - he will put it in a nest, a bird will fall into a snare - he will free it, throw a fish ashore in a wave - he will release it back into the water. Do not seek benefits, do not destroy, but help, save, protect - this is taught by folk wisdom.
3) Human intervention in the complex life of nature can lead to unpredictable consequences. One famous scientist decided to bring deer to his region. However, the animals could not adapt to the new conditions and soon died. But the ticks that lived in the skin of deer settled in, flooded forests and meadows and became a real disaster for the rest of the inhabitants.
4) Global warming, which is being talked about more and more insistently, is fraught with catastrophic consequences. But not everyone thinks that this problem is a direct consequence of the life of a person who, in the pursuit of profit, violates the stable balance of natural cycles. It is no coincidence that scientists are talking more and more about reasonable self-limitation of needs, that not profit, but the preservation of life should be the main goal of human activity.
5) Polish science fiction S. Lem in their "Star Diaries" described the story of space vagrants who devastated their planet, dug up all the bowels with mines, sold minerals to the inhabitants of other galaxies. The retribution for such blindness was terrible, but fair. That fateful day came when they found themselves on the edge of a bottomless pit, and the earth began to crumble under their feet. This story is a formidable warning to all mankind, which predatory plunders nature.
I do not expect everyone to agree with me, and I will be glad to those who object. It means you THINK. You have not yet lost this function and do not immediately believe what you read. You analyze, select facts and only then decide whether you agree or disagree, or your own theory will appear.
False values is a rather extensive topic, it is a consumer society, and a thirst for money, and a thirst for freebies, sexual promiscuity ... this is an endless list, but the result is the same: perceiving false values as true, you doom yourself to be unhappy.
Perhaps the most interesting false value is the consumer society. We consume everything, we are told about novelties from the screens, things determine the status of the status, we need more and more money, and for this we need to work, rob, etc.
And since we pursue the cult of consumption, we ourselves become consumers. Even feelings and spiritual components we try to compensate with material ones. For example, parents work hard, pay very little attention to the child, and feeling guilty for themselves, buy him expensive gifts, thereby nurturing a manipulator and consumer in him. Further it becomes even more interesting. The consumer is like a black hole, he absorbs everything into himself, but returns nothing, except for stool and not very positive thoughts, because he is never enough! Who are the consumers? These are the people who want everything ready-made: to lay straws on them, feed them, warm them up, but what about them? They will gladly consume it and perhaps express their comments on this matter. Would you invite such guests to your place? I think a couple of times and turn from the gate. As a result, consumers become outcasts in a spiritual sense. After all, there is an opinion that a person has never been alone as in the 21st century. What happens as a result: spiritual loneliness, people do not bring anything new to this world, they only process what is left in the world and produce manure. Naturally, there are also nervous breakdowns, and shooting in the streets, people do not see a way out of the impasse where they came, even if not entirely of their own free will.
I'm stuck, what next? Maybe you should stop and think about where is a friend and where is a fellow traveler? Maybe it's worth raising your head up, wait, but your head is still in place? If yes, then turn, shake it, blink your eyes, give yourself a resounding slap in the face, WAKE UP!
It is important to understand where you are now, to feel what is left of your soul, of your body, of your DREAMS. Remember yourself in childhood, how much playfulness, how much resourcefulness you had, there was a huge world for you, and the day was huge, and a piece of colored glass was a great jewel, and a small spring stream was a huge river for paper boats. Then you were REAL.
Stop! and write for yourself what you want, do not limit yourself to age, money and other things, just write what makes your soul happy, what makes you want to sing, dance and share joy with the world!
This is your real, not superficial, here is your energy and creativity. Going after your dreams, you understand that it is worth living for them and you are unlikely to want to die ahead of time. But if you live on the basis of “this is how it should be”, then I don’t envy you.
I want to bring interesting information from the article “What do dying people regret? »
1. I wish I had the courage to live the life of the real me, not the way others expected me to be.
It was the most common regret of all. When people suddenly realize that their life has come to an end and look back, it becomes clear how many dreams were never realized. Most people didn't achieve half of their dreams and died knowing that they did so because of choices they made or didn't follow.
It is very important to fulfill at least some of the dreams that you plan to fulfill. When you lose your health, then it's too late. Health gives freedom, which people realize only when they lose it irretrievably.
2. What a pity that I worked so hard
This is the regret of every man whose last days I was a nurse. They missed the youth of their children, and the communication with their partners. All the men I have cared for have deeply regretted spending so much of their lives spinning like a squirrel in a wheel to achieve success at work.
By simplifying your lifestyle, making conscious choices along the way, it is quite possible to go without the income you think you need. And by creating more free time in your life, you will become happier, and you will have more opportunities that will be more suitable for you based on your new lifestyle.
3. I wish I had more courage to express my feelings.
Many people suppress their feelings in order to get along with others. As a result, they exist neither here nor there, and never become what they were meant to be. Many develop illnesses that are the result of their bitterness and resentment that they have not become what they wanted to be.
We cannot control the feelings of others. However, although people may initially react in one way or another, when you change the way you communicate by speaking frankly, in the end it takes the relationship to a whole new and healthier level. Or frees your life from unhealthy relationships. You win either way.
4. I would like to keep close relationships with my friends.
Often they are not fully aware of all the delights of relationships with old friends, until the countdown of the last days of their lives begins, when it is almost impossible to return them back. Many are so focused on their personal lives that, gradually subsiding, true friendship disappears over the years. There were many regrets that they did not devote much time to real friendship, and did not strive to maintain a relationship that deserves it.
This moment is common to all, when a busy lifestyle leads to a thinning of friendships. But as you approach your last hours, ordinary life steps aside. People, whenever possible, strive to put their financial affairs in order. But it's not money or status that matters to them. They want to put things in order so as not to create problems for their loved ones. However, they are often so ill that they cannot complete this task. In the end, it all comes down to love and relationships. That's all they have in their last days - love and relationships.
5. I would like to allow myself to be happier.
This point is surprisingly shared by many. Many do not realize until the very end that happiness is a choice. They become trapped in old habits and patterns of behavior. The fear of change makes them pretend that they are happy with life, to themselves and to others.
When you are on your deathbed, what others think of you is the least of your concerns. How wonderful it would have been then, long ago, to just allow yourself to smile. Long before death is just days away.
There are no absolute values in content that all people would aspire to, but there are values that are absolute in value, to which all people are explicitly or implicitly drawn. it true values. The word "truth" in the axiological context differs from its interpretation in epistemology. Here truth does not mean the correspondence of knowledge to reality, but, on the contrary, the correspondence of worldly or political wisdom to reality . The truth or falsity of value in axiology is inseparable from wisdom. Based on this relationship, values can be divided into true and false . True values are those values that make the life of a given person and people close to him, a social group, society happy. On the contrary, false values, taking people's strength, time and money, make them unhappy. The truth or falsity of a value is best seen in the examples of the individual destinies of people. Socrates' motto "Know thyself" has a direct bearing on the truth value . A person who knows his material, intellectual and psychological capabilities well will choose the right path, a faithful companion in life and will be happy regardless of his position in society.. On the contrary, ignorance of oneself and the surrounding social environment, or the predominance of feelings over reason, lead to serious mistakes in life, to the loss of time, which cannot be returned.. “All that glitters is not gold,” says folk wisdom, but how difficult it is sometimes to recognize what is behind the external brilliance. Values give meaning to a person's life, they determine the direction of a person's activity. . It should be noted, however, that not only true, but also false values have this property, perhaps even to a greater extent than true values. The reason for this is the duality of human nature. Like an animal, a person is “programmed” to perform certain reflex actions. The performance of these actions does not require any intellectual or physical effort, there is no situation of choice, the individual-animal acts automatically, and easily automatically. Biological evolution took care of everything. The position of the individual carrier of culture is more complicated. Performing actions requires certain, sometimes considerable, intellectual and physical efforts. In more complex cases, the ratio of both sides of human nature is more complicated, but false values are formed more easily and seduce people more than true values. When, for example, a person is driven by greed, the question arises as to its source; the source is the human body. Greed shows a person as an animal, and not as a creator and bearer of culture . The need for self-affirmation can, in particular, be satisfied by the possession of things (material objects). It is not so much the thing itself that is valuable, but the possession of it..I am glad not because I have this thing, but because you do not have it. The needs of the individual, and they can only be with the individual, are satisfied by various means, but the sweetest of all are the means that express his biological nature. Needs are not true or false, only desires have this property, which, although they arise on the basis of needs, are determined by education, the content of the information received, the current situation and other circumstances. This is where most of the false value ideas. .False values are functioning values ,not development . Functioning is walking in a circle, not a qualitative change, not development. False values sometimes embrace entire nations. If we consider in axiological terms the cause of the collapse of the Roman Empire, it is quite easy to see the erosion of those values that exalted Rome. The desire for enrichment, depravity, craving for pleasures have become more significant than the worship of the gods, patriotism, respect for the law.The subject of society is the population, and the more people who are guided by false values, the closer the collapse of the state and the decay of society. . At present, certain values of Western culture have prevailed in society. They can be called false. There is no doubt that sooner or later the values of enrichment, popularity, sex, thrills, etc. will lead people who are guided by them into a dead end. As Western values dominate the world, anxiety for the future is engulfing Western scientists themselves. For an entrepreneur, his occupation is a kind of special sport. Money turns from a means into an end, which again turns into a means, and so on. The entrepreneur (with a few exceptions) is not interested in the well-being of the population, which he uses as material for his operations, he is interested in the rate of profit. To the existing million, you must add the second million, and so on ad infinitum. J.-J. Rousseau was right when he said that it is easier for a rich man to earn a second million than for a poor man the first penny . People who call themselves musicians write and sing one-day songs, lowering the already low level of musical culture of the population. Tomorrow there will be new songs that voiceless singers will sing. At worst, you can fuck up the classics, this is not prohibited by law. There are already so many “stars” that they, as in astronomy, have already begun to be distinguished by “values”. Fortunately, their native state allows them to occupy television and radio air. And also to get rich, which is doubly pleasant for the candidates for the “stars” and the “stars” themselves. The value of money and luxury goods led to the rise of crime. The value of human life turned out to be lower than the value of money, which is why films rarely appear on TV screens without shots and corpses.When the question of the death penalty for criminals arises, they immediately recall the value of human life, as if the criminals themselves did not reduce its significance. . Each society has a certain margin of safety, but if the political course is not periodically corrected, then sooner or later there comes a limit of strength, and with it a catastrophe.
Types of values
Values are divided on a variety of grounds.. The simplest one is activity content.On this basis, the values political, economic, legal, religious, moral and etc. But more relevant in philosophy and public sciences is the division of values according to subject, the bearer of values. In this regard, one can distinguish five kinds of values.
1. Personal values, individual. The infinite variety of values does not mean that they are equally important for all people. Humans are not omnivorous each of them recognizes only those values that correspond to individual characteristics and personal worldview . But in the first place is the value of life itself.. With the exception of suicides, everyone wants to live, and as long as possible, regardless of the quality and standard of living. The desire for life is a natural human right, which is granted to him by God, and not by the state.. The second most important is the value of health sufficient for active life . The older people get, the clearer the significance of this value becomes to them: the quality of life of a healthy person is clearly higher than the quality of life of a sick person. A healthy person can work, study, enjoy life, and a sick person undergoes a course of treatment, waiting for recovery. Therefore, among the priorities of many people, health occupies the most important place. Other values of personal life are difficult to arrange in descending order of their importance, however, undoubtedly, they have a great influence on the motives of people's behavior. Such are the values of human free will, love, friendship, family, prosperity, prestige, career growth, respect for others, education, abilities, communication, hospitality, hobbies, etc. A large number of personal life values allows an individual to change value orientations, “tactics” quite often personal life.
2. Values of small social groups. A small social group is a collection of people who systematically communicate with each other.. A small group should not be identified with a collective, since the collective as a set of free individuals is only one of the varieties of small social groups. Each of us is a member of several small groups - a family, a labor or military unit, an educational group, a sports section, an interest club, etc. A small social group makes very specific, sometimes strict, demands on its members.“We” prevails over “I”, otherwise the group is unstable or even breaks up. The “cement” that holds the group together are the values . The family is created not for the sake of procreation, as people usually stupidly answer, but for the sake of a higher quality of life - the actual, and not the imagined freedom of a person. Children feel the value of family life stronger than adults. Family photos usually show young parents and happy children. Other small groups, which are called collectives only for convenience of designation, also have their own values. . Among them, the leading role is played by the solidarity of the group members in the face of a potential adversary, in whatever form he appears.. It doesn’t matter for what reason we ended up in the same “team”, but as soon as we ended up together, there must be standards of conduct that allow us to coexist. Therefore, the members of the small group undertake to help each other, or at least not interfere with each other. The “collective” often reveals such values as help and mutual assistance, cooperation, exchange of experience, etc.. The best part of many people's lives is spent at work or service, so communication in small groups leaves a deep impression on their souls.
3. Values of large social groups. A large social group is a collection of people who are similar to each other in some sign that is significant for society. Large groups include classes, nations, races, religious, professional, gender, age and other social groups. Unlike small groups, members of large social groups almost always do not personally know and do not communicate with each other. Nevertheless, they know about the existence of their own kind thanks to the activities of the state, the media, and various social institutions. An individual is simultaneously a member of several not only small, but also large social groups. He belongs to a certain class of society, nation, generation, gender, etc. e. Knowledge of one's own kind allows each individual to identify (correlate) himself with a particular group. In accordance with the belonging of an individual to one or another large social group, values common to members of the group are revealed.. The most essential basis for the division into large groups is the attitude towards ownership of the means of production and consumer goods. On this basis people are divided into classes of rich and poor(although there are other signs of classes). Both the rich and the poor share the values of class solidarity, solidarity, and unity of action. The twentieth century passed under the sign of the strengthening of national movements both on a global scale and within the territories of states, which in itself indicates an increase in the importance of national values. These include, above all, the independence of a given nation from other nations. Just as an individual cherishes his personal freedom, so does a nation cherish its independence. A nation is a collection of people living in the same culture (language, customs, traditions, holidays, beliefs, folklore, art, etc.) The true life of a nation consists in its “use” of elements of its culture. These elements are national values. . For members of society who profess a certain religion, the values are the dogmas and the cult of this religion.. The adherents of each religion consider their own religion to be the only "true" one, and all others are false. Men and women also have different values based on their gender, about which a lot has been written and said. Suffice it to mention feminism - the ideology of the female sex, based on the alleged superiority of women over men.. Representatives of different generations also have different values, which is the reason for the well-known conflict of “fathers and children” that is constantly reproduced in each generation. Clothing, hairstyles, demeanor, music, leisure - everything distinguishes representatives of different generations.
4. Society values (public values ). Society is not a set of physical bodies of individuals, but a set of social relations between them and large and small groups . The content of such relations is different and it depends to a decisive extent on the values that guide people. The behavior of people is determined not only by individual values and the values of small and large groups to which they identify themselves. There are values of a higher order - public. These include one or another form of government or type of state, form of ownership, patriotism, political stability, economic prosperity, social justice, the prestige of the profession, the prestige of the state in the international arena, a high level of development of science, military power, etc. The great or small significance of certain social values is tested in troubled times, when the further course of events in a given country is unclear and disturbing. One of the famous political values is the value of democracy. But in the last few centuries, it has acquired a completely different meaning than it was in its homeland - ancient Greece. If in the small Greek city-states democracy really meant the power of the people (free citizens with certain property), then with the conquest of state power by the bourgeoisie in modern times, democracy began to mean the races of moneybags. Whoever has more money and who will be able to dispose of it better, he won the “elections”. In particular, if the contender for the commanding chair has generously paid for the servile “people”. Former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called bourgeois democracy a vile thing, but better than which, in his opinion, as if people did not come up with anything. It is unlikely that the inhabitants of the Sultanate of Brunei, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and other Arab Emirates would agree with W. Churchill. These countries are dominated by monarchs, and the standard of living is such that the citizens of democratic states would envy.
5. Human values. For a long time, the commandments of Moses claimed the role of universal human values. However, these commandments were originally addressed only to the Jews and did not apply to other peoples. The popular commandments do not express the ideals of justice, freedom, equality, therefore the commandments of Moses express the culture of one people. Do not kill a Jew, do not deceive a Jew, etc. These commandments did not apply to representatives of other peoples. They did not agree with the need for retribution for atrocities, the destruction of maniacs, the protection of the family or homeland from enemies. It is not surprising that representatives of other nations so rarely listened to these commandments. Human values should be considered those that are recognized by all people in a particular historical era. These values are eternal, not temporary, and are shared by almost all the more or less civilized inhabitants of the planet. The spiritual universal values are culture, especially religion and language, the ideals of justice, freedom and equality and others. Although religions, languages, understanding of these ideals are different, none of the people refuses them. Less understood are material values. First of all, the value of private ownership of the means of production and consumer goods should be attributed to material values. Private property does not deny, but complements other forms of property (municipal, corporate, state), but it is traditionally recognized by all people. And this is not surprising: after all, the value of private property lies in the fact that it is the material basis of human freedom, real freedom, not imaginary. Fertile soils, a mild climate, sufficient rainfall, the presence of minerals, precious metals and stones, the ecological balance between society and nature, etc., also belong to the material universal values.. The coincidence of people's values generates great energy, allows them to organize their coexistence. However, due to the many differences between people, there is the same set of their individual and other values.. Their significance may be small, so the mismatch of values does not lead to a complication of relations. These discrepancies may overlap in coincidences of more significant values. But it should be noted that any values, from individual to universal, do not know compromises. . Many conflicts between individuals, small and large social groups, peoples and states arise because their values are different, or because that they understand the same values in different ways. Addictions and interests do not always allow them to come to an agreement. The key to understanding (not necessarily agreeing) all sorts of frictions, tensions, conflicts is the knowledge of people's values.
The value of friendship
In the set of individual values, a prominent place belongs to friendship and love. In the modern era, there are complaints about the impoverishment of friendship, which is apparently caused by the individualism and selfishness that plague Western culture. Among “traditional” peoples, the significance of the value of friendship is not questioned. In friendship they see the social support of the individual. As Eastern wisdom says: "A man without friends is the same as a tree without roots." The phenomenon of friendship arises during the decomposition of the tribal system, when, on the one hand, family ties weaken, and when, on the other hand, the network of social relations between people becomes more complicated. Proto-Slavic word drugb means “friend, comrade, different, different, next”. The increasingly complex social structure of society requires the strengthening of social ties and a larger number of people on whom an individual could rely in the hour of trials of fate. There is a tradition of brotherhood. Usually it is furnished with the same ritual, for example, brothers cut their fingers, drain the blood into a bowl and share it among themselves. Outwardly, friendship acts as an imitation of family ties, which has come down to our days. The so-called godfathers and mothers, brothers and sisters are known. Internally, friendship complements family relations or compensates for their insufficiency. At the same time, intuitively, people understand the need for a very moderate number of friends, unless, of course, we consider friends who do not betray in difficult times, and not those who are friends “on occasion”, since their abundance does not satisfy the requirement of quality relationships. Therefore, the proverb “...and have a hundred friends” is unlikely to meet social realities. A friend is our second “I”, only a relative can be closer than a friend. The number of friends should be small. The tribes of Africa, New Guinea and other peoples have a number of friends limited to three persons.. Friends should not be relatives, they were called “knife brothers” and were obliged to provide mutual assistance, especially material. Among the Indians of America, a brother friend turns out to be even more precious than a brother. To refuse to help a brother-in-arms or to leave him on the battlefield was to cover oneself with indelible shame. Ideas about the value of friendship were reflected in the works of philosophers. Plato's Socrates states that "b Without friendship, no communication between people has any value.”Plato himself wrote about friends as people who are much closer to each other than mother and father, the friendship between them is stronger, because the spiritual qualities that bind them are more beautiful and immortal. Aristotle in "Nicomachean Ethics" expounds the theory of friendship. Friendship, in his opinion, is the most necessary thing in life. No one will choose a life without friends, even in exchange for all other benefits. Aristotle highlights three types of friendship: 1) utilitarian, which is based on consideration of mutual or unilateral benefit; 2) hedonistic, which is based on emotional attachment and is done for the sake of pleasure, pleasantness, this is friendship for the sake of friendship; 3) moral or perfect, in which utilitarian and hedonistic motives are combined, this is friendship turning into love. Friendship is understood not only under the influence of the value-motivational approach to it. From the point of view of the structural-functional approach, friendship is classified according to its objective functions within a certain social system and according to its place in a number of social institutions.
1) One of these functions is merge: friendship merges with some other type of activity, for example, with cooperation, with staying in places that you would like to leave as soon as possible (“friends in misfortune”) or a more significant social role. People are friends because they occupy responsible equal positions in the state. Under other circumstances, they would hardly have been friends.
2) Substitution. Friendship replaces, compensates for any missing roles. A person who does not have relatives replaces them with friendship with other people or communication with animals. Lonely, elderly people become attached to animals, take care of them like children, because they have a clear lack of communication. Sometimes animals are preferred to people for their sincerity and devotion, which are not found in people.
3) Addition. Friendship complements other social roles without merging with them. In the family, there are good relations between dad, mom and their children, however, children want to be friends with their peers.
4) Competition. Friendship acts as an antithesis to other social roles and competes with them.“Friendship is friendship, but tobacco is apart”... It happens that friendships compete with family or work relationships. The friendship of men, as well as women, can sometimes seriously complicate relationships in families. At work, a person spends the greater and better part of his life, at work, “service romances” are not uncommon in friendship, violations of labor discipline occur, etc. The principle “friendship is friendship, and service is service” turns out to be difficult for people who falsely understand the essence of friendship. Both approaches to understanding friendship are not opposed, but complement each other. In real life, it is unlikely that anyone reflects on the establishment of friendships and their prospects. Friendship usually begins spontaneously, voluntarily, under the influence of sympathy and trust of people for each other. At the same time, friendship is very selective; not every individual will establish warm relations with the name. Selectivity is determined by some conditions: homogeneity of temperaments, unity of values, similarity of social statuses and roles (“people of the same circle”), the presence of joint activities. Hence the proverb: “Tell me who your friend is...” Under these conditions, friendship between A and B is possible, although it may be hindered by some unaccounted for factors, for example, discrediting subject A or B information. In any macro or micro environment, there are unwritten rules friendship. They come down to this: my friend's friend is my friend; the enemy of my friend is my enemy the friend of my enemy is my enemy; the enemy of my enemy is my friend. In more developed societies, such a position is also possible: neither friend nor enemy, but so ... Friendship is diverse, which testifies to its objective necessity and unfading value for people. Individuals, families, collectives, cities and nations are friends. How wrote Epicurus, “friendship with a dance goes around the universe, announcing to all of us that we should awaken to the glorification of a happy life.” It is difficult to talk about a happy life as a result of friendship, because in addition to friends, there are enough enemies. But undoubted the result of friendship is cooperation and mutual assistance, which is not enough for an acceptable life. The value of friendship lies in strengthening and maintaining social ties, such communication of people among themselves, which increases a person's satisfaction with his life.
The value of love
Love is a more complex phenomenon of the mental and spiritual life of a person. In essence, it is identical with happiness, since a loving person does not know anything higher and more significant for him. There are countless poems and songs about love. frequency of use, the word “love” ranks first among thousands of other words. But the theme of love occupied not only writers and musicians. Philosophers also paid great attention to it. A loving person is not alone. Hegel wrote: “Love means in general the awareness of my unity with the other, that I am not isolated for myself, but acquire my self-consciousness only as a renunciation of my being-for-itself and through the knowledge of myself as my unity with the other and the other with me. But love is a feeling, in other words, the morality of the natural in form: in the state there is no longer love, in it unity is recognized as a law, in it the content must be reasonable, and I must know it. The first moment in love is that I do not want to be an independent person for myself and that if I were, I would feel my insufficiency and incompleteness. The second moment is that I find myself in the person of the other, that I have a significance in him, which he, in turn, finds in me. A loving person, according to Hegel, forgets himself in the beloved and leaves the beloved, enriched by his love. . The 20th century philosopher Erich Fromm, analyzing the phenomenon of love, highlights several of its essential moments. Love is the ability to give, not receive. Giving does not mean sacrificing and suffering, giving, a person lives. “ Giving is much more joyful than receiving, - wrote E. Fromm, - not because it is superfluous, but because, giving, I feel that I live. A loving person is responsible for his beloved and does not consider responsibility a burdensome duty. Responsibility is accompanied by respect for the beloved and a thorough knowledge of him. A truly loving person lives loved". Such a high assessment of the phenomenon of love shows it as a fact of spirituality. However, the understanding of love is greatly complicated and vulgarized by the connection of love with sex. Sexual bias in the understanding of love takes place in many works, although the spiritual essence of love is visible to the naked eye. In the era of "mass culture" sex is even covered with a mask of love. What is the name of the American film "Let's Make Love" alone worth? As if love can be “made”... Sex can be an addition to love, it can be done without love, but it cannot replace it in any way. In mythology, eros was understood as the creative force of nature.The notion was spread about the universal "sympathy" of things, that love created the world and moves it. In relation to interpersonal relationships, eros was understood as spontaneous and passionate self-giving, enthusiastic love, aimed at the carnal or spiritual. Philia called love-friendship, due to social ties and personal choice. Storge- this is love-affection, especially family, and agape- sacrificial, condescending love for one's neighbor. Plato builds his "ladder" of love-beauty somewhat differently. The first and lowest step is the desire for physical pleasure, the natural goal of which is the birth of children. The second step is love for specific examples of physical beauty. The third step is the love of beauty in general. The fourth (highest) stage is agape, that is, love for wisdom, which, like religious experiences, allows you to know the absolute truth. Love of the highest type is the work of the soul, the work of two noble minds uniting to create spiritual offspring, which only men are capable of. AT dialogue "Feast" Plato expounds the doctrine of androgynous- people of the third sex that does not currently exist: “Once upon a time, our nature was not the same as now ... People were of three sexes, and not two, as they are now - male and female, for there was also a third sex that united in imagine the signs of these both; he himself disappeared, and only his name was preserved from him ... - androgynes, ... they combined the appearance and name of both sexes - male and female. Then each person had a rounded body, the back did not differ from the chest, there were four arms, as many legs as there were arms, and each had two faces on the neck, exactly the same; the head of these two faces, looking in opposite directions, was common ... There were three of these sexes ... because the male from the beginning comes from the Sun, the female - from the Earth, and the one who combined both of these - from the Moon, since the Moon also combines both beginnings... Terrible in their strength and power, they nurtured great plans and encroached even on the power of the gods... They tried to ascend to heaven in order to attack the gods.” Further, according to Plato, the threat prompted the gods to take decisive action. Zeus cut the androgynes in half and created homosexuals when the male half seeks to reunite with the male half, lesbians when the female half seeks to reunite with the female half, and heterosexuals when the male and female halves seek to reunite. Heterosexuals were considered the lowest sexual category. Since then, according to Plato, people tend to be attracted to each other, they are trying to restore unity. The process of re-creating unity is love, which is a lingering feeling of reunification into a whole individuality. The myth of androgens has become traditionally interpreted in the sense of the sexual attraction of men and women to each other, which reduced a person to the level of an animal. Descendants corrected Plato, his name began to be called love without sex . Strictly speaking, any love does not involve sex. Ordinary consciousness identifies lust with love, but lust is a biological phenomenon, not a spiritual one. The need to procreate and create a family was not always caused by love. Although the ancient world knew romantic love, it was not always recorded as the love of a man and a woman. Same-sex love flourished. ancient greek writer Lucian in the work “Two Loves” through the lips of his heroes recognizes the need for a family, however, he considers the true love of men for boys. But the qualitative difference between love and sex is manifested even in those types of love that are traditionally associated with sex. one) Love of a man and a woman sung in many literary and musical works. It is not at all about the thirst to rush into bed as soon as possible. Lovers want to be together and that's enough for them. Here, indeed, a desire is manifested, if not to restore, then at least to establish the spiritual unity of a man and a woman. 2) Same-sex love may not exist without sex, but it does not come down to it.3) The love of parents for children and of children for parents is almost a purely spiritual relationship, although to some extent biologically determined. This kind of “love” of animals for their underage cubs is known. Subsequently, “moms”, not to mention “dads”, become completely indifferent to their children and even drive them away from themselves. The love of human parents lasts a lifetime.4) Love for work, work is characterized by a high degree of self-sacrifice, the rejection of some other activities, sometimes even from the family. Fanatics in the best sense of the word have brought together passion and work, in our time they are called workaholics. 5) Love for the Motherland, small and large. Love for a small homeland (settlement, area in which this person grew up) is due to painful childhood memories. Love for a great homeland (a society of which the individual is a member) is conditioned by the degree of spiritual development of the individual, when a person is “offended by the state”. 6) Love for nature is manifested not only in the contemplation of wonderful landscapes, but also in the activities to preserve these landscapes.. 7) Self-love is usually associated with selfishness. Really, selfishness is selfishness, but only in the case when the egoist infringes on the interests of other people or harms them. In other cases, self-love is morally justified, since a person who does not love, does not take care of himself, is unlikely to arouse the trust of other people. Thus, in the phenomenon of love, its connection with the biological and spiritual nature of man is visible. The first three kinds of love are determined by both sides of human nature, the rest - exclusively by the spiritual nature of man. The value of love lies in the desire for unity with the object of love, and in relation to another person, in the desire to live his life, his feelings and thoughts.
