The word "intelligentsia" is absent in most of the world's languages, being, in fact, a purely Russian concept. In the West, instead of this term it is customary to use the concept of "intellectuals", which in a general sense means representatives of mental labor.
Instructions
Step 1
In its original sense, the word "intelligentsia" was used in Latin to refer to a wide range of mental activities. From the second half of the 19th century, this word began to denote a social group of people with a critical way of thinking, the ability to systematize experience and knowledge, and a high degree of reflection.
Step 2
In Russia, this term is usually understood as a special socio-professional and cultural group of people who are employed in the spheres of mental labor, have the ability to be gentle in manifestations, tact and sensitivity.
Step 3
The difference between a Western intellectual and a Russian intellectual is in the application of their skills and abilities. Intellectuals are purely individualists who, above all, take care of themselves and their lives. An integral feature of the Russian intelligentsia is concern for the fate of the Motherland.
Step 4
Intelligence is a property inherent in few. It is a combination of moral and high mental culture. We can say that intelligence is primarily manifested in relation to other people. One of the defining qualities of an intellectual is the ability to listen to the opposite opinion of the interlocutor without interrupting or objecting. Respect for the interlocutor, the ability to comply with the norms of communication is a mandatory property of an intelligent person.
Step 5
The intelligentsia in Russia was formed from freethinkers of noble origin of the nineteenth century. They were distinguished by radical, but unrealizable at that time ideas of restructuring society, which did not cause enthusiasm in the authorities. The uprising of the Decembrists can be called a riot of the intelligentsia. This uprising suffered a fiasco, but it had the broadest public outcry.
Step 6
By the end of the nineteenth century, the backbone of the Russian intelligentsia was already educated people from ignoble families. In Soviet times, their ranks were joined by the children of peasants and workers, who received a good education, who adopted high ethical and moral principles from their teachers.
Step 7
The modern Russian intelligentsia is characterized by the ability to perceive absolutely any person as an equal, friendliness, moral maturity, and impeccable deeds. In fact, the defining quality of the modern Russian intelligentsia is the ability to "live according to conscience."
Step 8
The fearless defense of ideas, the use of knowledge, the desire to heal, teach, pass on the accumulated experience - all this makes the intelligentsia a necessary part of the modern healthy Russian society.