On 28 May 2026, ARGIH held a seminar with Maxim Demin, a research fellow at Ruhr University Bochum in Germany, for a discussion on the relationship between free will and determinism in late imperial Russian thought. Drawing on research from his forthcoming book project, Experiments on the Soul: Philosophy and the Rise of Psychology in Imperial Russia, Demin explored how Russian intellectuals grappled with fundamental questions about human nature, moral responsibility, and scientific knowledge during a period of profound social and political transformation in the 1860s.
Demin's primary field of research is post-Hegelian philosophy and its intellectual development in the German-speaking world during the nineteenth century. His interest in Russian intellectual history emerged naturally from his earlier work on the transformation of philosophy into a modern academic discipline. The rise of psychology and empirical research into consciousness, morality, and behaviour raised profound questions about the relationship between science and philosophy.
When he turned to the Russian case, he was struck by how deeply Russian scholars and public intellectuals engaged with these debates and how closely connected they were to intellectual developments occurring across Europe. Rather than existing on the margins of European thought, Russian thinkers actively participated in transnational discussions about the nature of mind, morality, and scientific knowledge.
Central to Demin’s ARGIH talk was the free will and determinism debate that emerged in Russia during the 1860s. As Demin noted, these discussions unfolded against the backdrop of the emancipation of the serfs and broader efforts to rethink the social and political foundations of the Russian Empire. Questions about whether human behaviour was determined by biological and social forces or shaped by individual freedom carried immediate political implications. If former serfs were to be regarded as autonomous and equal members of society, inherited assumptions about the relationship between body, soul, and agency required reconsideration.
These debates form a key part of Demin's book project, which seeks to address gaps in the intellectual history of late imperial Russia by recovering the contributions of figures who have often been overlooked in traditional accounts. In particular, he aims to bring greater attention to lesser-known thinkers, including several women philosophers whose work has been marginalized within the established canon. Rediscovering these voices, he argues, opens new perspectives on the development of Russian philosophy and psychology and challenges conventional narratives about who shaped these fields.
The discussion offered ARGIH members the opportunity to engage with a fascinating and often overlooked chapter in the history of ideas. It also reflected one of ARGIH's broader goals: creating a space where researchers can share works in progress and exchange perspectives and insights across disciplinary boundaries.