Leo shestov and isaiah berlin: philosophy of tragedy and conflict at the crossroads of cultures

The article is devoted to the study of the intersections between the ideas of two philosophers with multicultural identity - Isaiah Berlin and Leo Shestov. The main task of the research is to place the philosophy of the Russian overseas diaspora in a historical and semantic context and to trace certain patterns and peculiarities of the worldviews of its representatives. The key thesis of the article is that the similarity of existential multicultural experience brings to life similar basic philosophical attitudes. Berlin and Shestov characterize human situation as a situation of existential choice and moral tragedy. Life is determined by tragedy and creativity that go hand in hand, individual ability to create is rooted in despair and inability to find the universal foundation of the world, to bring the world into harmony with one’s own ideas and expectations. The author conducts a consistent comparative analysis of Berlin’s and Shestov’s ideas regarding the appointment of philosophy, criticism of the Enlightenment Monism and the idea of rational unity, human nature, faith and liberalism.