Alexander von Humboldt: the Outstanding Natural Scientist, the Silent Ideologist of Multiculturalism

Abstract

The author studies the reception of A. von Humboldt of the humanitarian prob­lems of his time. In his works Humboldt articulated many ideas of the just social order and even of multiculturalism. But despite great interest towards the natural science of the regions he visited, the researcher avoided public judgments about social problems of these states’ residents. A. Humboldt criticized many actual so­cial problems: aggressive cultural assimilation, colonialism, slavery, social in­equality etc., but avoided public demands of social transformations in the re­gions he visited. He either could reject any violent social transformations or looking for loyalty of the state’s authorities, that financed and organized his ex­peditions. A. Humboldt, the opponent of slavery, never once spoke critically about slavery in a personal conversation or correspondence with T. Jefferson. During his journey across Russia, the scientist was extremely careful in his judg­ments about the Russian bondmen. The inconsistency of the Humboldt’s per­sonal liberal position and his humanitarian blindness to socio-political problems illustrates the problem of the relationship between people of authority and people of knowledge, that was announce by F. Znanetsky. Humboldt who was primarily such a lay counselor just focused on his own academic research thar was his main priority.