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Edward Abramowski |
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Abramowski was one of the
most significant representatives of Socialist
thought in Poland. Trained as a sociologist, he was interested in the
links between variations in production structures and the corresponding
changes in the individual psyche, which led to the formation of a "new
collective soul". Later on he resumed an interest in psychological
research, which he saw as constituting the foundation of sociology and the
philosophical basis for reform of the Marxist system. In gnoseology, Abramowski
traces all human knowledge back to the world of phenomena, whose only characteristic
is that of being "the object of our thought". Transferring this
Kantian approach to the study of society, Abramowski viewed social phenomena,
insofar as they are objects of thought, as comprising two complementary
and inseparable aspects: the material and the psychological. He called this
theory "sociological phenomenalism". On the basis of this dialectic
interrelation between the psyche and matter Abramowski put forward his interpretation
of Socialism, in which a fundamental role is played by the moral education
of workers; he was convinced that a new social order could not be created
unless it was transformed into the needs and sentiments of humankind, into
a new ethics - unless, that is, a "moral revolution" occurs. Vice
versa, there could in his opinion be no new brotherhood amongst men unless
it were embodied in concrete social institutions rather than mere words.
The co-operative movement, not only an institution but also an occasion
for self-education in the ways of democracy and co-operation, was to be
the most suitable tool by which to introduce a new social order.
Leaving his native town of Stefanin, Ukraine, for Warsaw 
, Abramowski became acquainted with positivist
literature (reading Darwin, Spencer, Taine and Marx) and soon had his first
contact with the organised proletariat. At the University of Cracow in 1885,
he joined the Socialist movement, founding students' organisations and circulating
clandestine foreign literature. After a year he abandoned his studies in
natural sciences and left for Geneva, where he devoted himself to the humanities
and came into contact with the Socialist exiles, becoming increasingly committed
to the organisation of the workers' movement. With this purpose in mind
he returned to Poland, where he tried to reorganise the "Proletariat"
party (second phase) and went into journalism, divulging his ideas on scientific
Socialism. Abroad again in 1892, he published the Principles of the Programme
of the Polish Socialist Workers' Party (PPRS), where he took an internationalistic
stand according to which the social and economic liberation of the workers'
movement could only be brought about by collaboration between the Russian
and Polish proletariat. A stay in Geneva in 1894 marked a turning point
in his life: from that moment on he was no longer actively involved in politics
but devoted himself to scientific research. Back in Poland in 1897, he wrote
his most important sociological and political works, developing his concept
of a "stateless Socialism" in which he stresses the importance
for a new Socialist society of conscience and a moral revolution. His thought
tended increasingly towards an anarcho-syndacalist position in politics,
emphasising the importance of co-operative organisation of the masses. Abramowski
is, in fact, considered the founder of the Polish co-operative movement,
which he tried to set up by promoting economic associations and initiatives.
Alongside this politico-social theorising, he also conducted an intense
research activity in the field of experimental psychology, showing particular
interest in the subconscious. This gave him a certain notoriety abroad (several
articles were written in French and published in international journals)
and in 1916 he was given a chair in Experimental Psychology at the University
of Warsaw, which he occupied until his death.
- Pisma (Works), Warszawa, 1924-1928, 4 voll.
- Filozofia spoleczna. Wibór pism (Social Philosophy. Selected
Writings), Warszawa, 1965.
-L'analyse physiologique de la perception, Paris, 1911.
- Le subcoscient normal. Nouvelles recherches expérimentales,
Paris, 1914.
- B. Urbankowski, Dialectics
of psychology and sociology in the social thought of E. Abramowski,
"Dial. and Human.", 1 (1981), pp. 161-186;
- A. Flis, E. Abramowski's social and political thought, in Masters
of Polish Sociology, ed. P. Sztompka, Wroclaw, 1984, pp. 27-52.
- I. Dehnel, The concept of unconsciousness in Edward Abramowski's psychological
works, "Ruch Filozoficzny", 2 (1995), pp. 221-4.
Abramowski's
Letters to Kazimierz Twardowski
A Short
History of Polish Anarchism
A paper
by Jacek Sierpinski (in Polish), "Edward Abramowski - Wolnosciowy Kooperatysta"
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