Ivan Zadorozhnyuk

The problems of provocation are considered, for the first time at the level of the scientific monograph presented by the sociologist A.V. Dmitriev and the philosopher A.A. Sychev. It emphasizes the peculiarity of the scientific study of singular phenomena, especially those that have a powerful impact on social processes. The role of provocations in political life is particularly noted, and it is stressed that, firstly, they do not determine the course of events in one direction or another (“history itself uses provocateurs,” the authors argue), and secondly, their impact can be nullified. The treatment of provocation as a manifestation (objectification) of the paradoxical consciousness is considered. As an illustrative material highlighting the role of provocations in history, an analysis is given of the threshold of the First World War in 1914 and the colored revolutions, one of which occurred in 2014 in Ukraine. The review poses the problem of creating an intersubjective area of social singularity. The urgency of a comprehensive study of the phenomenon of provocation, taking into account its social consequences, is emphasized.