ABSTRACT
Hegelianism was the defining element in M. A. Bakunin's turn to revolutionism; by sharpening Hegel's doctrine and interpreting it one-sidedly, he came to see creative force only in negation. Both Schelling and Hegel inspired Russian thought within the framework of Schiller's views, as they themselves had originally been inspired by Schiller. This chapter considers two circles, one headed by Nicholas Vladimirovich Stankevich and the other by Herzen though the two circles sustained close personal relations. It introduces N. V. Stankevich, their 'leader' and the most brilliant and remarkable member of the circle. In 1837 Bakunin introduced Belinski to Hegel, and this opened up a new chapter in Belinski's spiritual life. In 1836 Belinski came under Bakunin's influence, and became absorbed in Fichte's ethical idealism. Bakunin explained Fichte to him, and later he and others did the same with Hegel: Belinski himself did not know German.
