Rational egoism emerged as the dominant social philosophy of the Russian nihilist movement, proposing that we are only rational if we maximise our own self-interest, sharing similarities with utilitarianism, which seeks to maximise utility, such as well-being or happiness for all individuals. The nihilist characters defined themselves as those who deny everything, representing the negation of all pre-existing ideals. Ivan Turgenev, Fathers and Sons, Chapter 5 “A nihilist is a man who does not bow down before any authority, who does not take any principle on faith, whatever reverence that principle may be enshrined in.” It had previously been synonymous with scepticism, which transformed into moral and political nihilism: In 1862, Ivan Turgenev published one of the most acclaimed Russian novels of the century, Fathers and Sons, where the characters talk about a strange new philosophy called “ nihilism” which became popular with the Russian youth.

But before delving into Notes from Underground, we must first observe the historical context in which it was written, in order to better understand Dostoevsky’s warning.

Notes from Underground attempts to warn people of several ideas that were gaining ground in the 1860s including: moral and political nihilism, rational egoism, determinism, utilitarianism, utopianism, atheism and what would become communism.Īs we’ll see, many of these themes are alluded to in the novel.

Dostoevsky underground