Marginal- This is a person excluded from various kinds of institutions of society. Marginality is considered one of those concepts that, despite its complexity, is on everyone’s lips at the same time, but has very ambiguous interpretations, even of a speculative nature, often with a negative connotation. This category of people is often classified as lumpen - declassed elements from society. What does marginal mean? The word is very fashionable, associated with such things as non-system, non-mainstream, being outside the views of the dominant group.

The concept of marginal is revealed through its Latin root margo - edge. Marginal is a person who is classified as a certain social group It’s impossible, he seems to hover on the edge of groups that are different from each other, and therefore feels their counter-directional influence.

Meaning of the word marginal

What does marginal mean? A marginal is a person who does not participate enough or is completely excluded from the activities of society’s institutions: economic, cultural, political. Social Sciences it is believed that the marginalized are in some way surplus material of society, in need of strict control, monitoring, requiring elaboration. This is a negative phenomenon of society, indicating problems and illnesses within society. It is possible to define a certain norm of social participation in the life of society and its groups, and lack of participation is a deviation from this norm.

Who is the marginalized? This is a person who, being placed outside the group, is perceived by its members as an outsider. He simultaneously combines distance and closeness with the group - he is physically in it, but, however, is not included in it as its member, does not share its biography, but is an alien, staying like a guest in it. However, the presence of such an outsider gives the group a chance to define what it itself is not, to recognize its boundaries. He is also demarcated from the group and can have objectivity in his judgments regarding it, because he is free and can leave it.

The classic concept of marginality implies not so much exclusion from a group as being on the border between two groups. As a result, the marginalized person carries in his personality a cultural feeling that is not purely psychological; it is not a feeling of deprivation and psychological discomfort due to not being included in the group. It is rather a practiced marginality. This conflict is recognized by the marginalized person as involvement in several incompatible groups and the impossibility of being completely with one of them.

Types of marginalized people

Each marginalized person can be more fully described through the characteristics of his marginality and the reasons that led to it. Having asked the question to reveal the types of marginality, we can talk about the division into ethnic, economic, social and political marginals. What do these four subtypes mean?

Ethnic marginals are those who exchanged life among people of their nationality for life in new ethnic groups. This usually happens as a result of population migration, forced or arbitrary. A striking example of a forced migrant is a refugee; such a person becomes marginalized involuntarily, leaves to save his life, and it will be especially difficult to settle in a new place if the new ethnic group is significantly different from the native one. This can be influenced by the language barrier, appearance different from the rest of the population, involvement in a different religion, and cultural differences.

Ethnic marginality is the most difficult to overcome; it is associated with those factors that a person is sometimes unable to change - appearance, mentality, customs. It is this type of marginalized people who most often do not have personal qualities, predetermining their marginality, but becomes marginalized against their will. A slightly milder example of ethnic marginals are people who moved to new country, more prosperous and with greater opportunities than their homeland. These are migrants from low-income countries. And for them, overcoming marginality is also practically impossible; throughout their lives, such people continue to feel connections with their native people, but are far from it.

Economic marginals appear as a result of changes in financial sector, this could be the loss of a job and the inability to find a new one, the loss of usual sources of income, the loss of property. The level of economic marginality increases significantly in society during periods of economic and political crises as a consequence of a decrease in the number of jobs, and sometimes critical cuts in entire areas of activity, up to their complete closure.

An example would be the closure of factories that operated successfully in Soviet period and their disbandment during privatization and sale. Thousands of specialists found themselves without the opportunity to apply their skills and earn money, and only a few were able to find work in their profession or retrain. Inflation and depreciation of savings are the monetary reasons for the emergence of economic marginals. Also, in situations of acute need or fraud, which grows during periods of crisis, many people lose their housing and other large property, and can even, in extreme cases, move into the category of lumpen, becoming people without a specific place of residence.

The concept of social marginality is associated with the incompleteness of movement between two social groups, usually vertical - movement in the “social elevator”. However, having started moving in order to establish his better position and occupy more advantageous positions in his society, a person may not achieve the desired, “sliding” to an even lower level. Or stop at the border, unable to either reach the desired level or return to the previous group. This includes all processes of marginalization associated with an unsuccessful shift social status– for example, the death of a rich spouse. The social marginalized are losing their usual way of life.

The political marginal is another common type, which is associated with a political crisis that has grown to the limit of disbelief in certain forces in politics and a decrease in civil society. Changes of regimes, changes in statehood and social norms arising from legislation and power - all this gives rise to another category of marginalized people, psychologically stuck, for example, between the USSR and already separate countries post-Soviet space. The more often regimes change, the fewer promises politicians keep, the higher the level of political marginality in society.

Examples of marginalized people

It is interesting that some psychologists, philosophers, and sociologists consider the marginal personality type to be the most civilized, developed type, advanced, mobile and agile, open to change and everything new.

Which famous personalities illustrate marginality well? Perhaps the most striking example is Jesus Christ, the God-man in the Christian tradition. Even though he was born in a marginal environment - in a stable, and throughout his entire life, he not only does not strengthen himself in any social group, but, on the contrary, destroys many of the norms of that society: in his youth he teaches in the temple, in his youth he disperses the money changers in it, earns money through low-paid labor, takes fishermen as apprentices, communicates with harlots, and even dies among robbers. And, however, he becomes one of the most influential personalities not only in Christian, but even in secular environments, laying in it the foundations of ethics and high moral standards.

Another interesting example- the great Russian writer Leo Tolstoy. He loved life in the village, denying many of the privileges of the nobility, wrote revolutionary books for the consciousness of not only those times, but also today, interpreted Christian norms, but was persecuted by church ministers, laying the foundation even for a separate movement, Tolstoyism. And not only Tolstoy - all the truly great writers, poets, playwrights who have become classics today, at one time left one or another social group, felt in themselves at least this cultural duality, which pushed them to write the works we love today .

Nowadays, marginality takes on a new dimension due to the spread of the Internet, which helps to overcome any boundaries. All large quantity people work as freelancers, maintaining loneliness, reluctance to intensive social contacts, denial of socially accepted standards of life.

05/06/2018 68 451 2 Igor

Psychology and Society

Often on television or in media mass media we hear and see foreign word"marginal". Its meaning has undergone significant changes, from the time it was formulated by the American sociologist R. Park to the present day. To explain the actual meaning of this concept in simple words, it is necessary to trace the history of the use of this term and highlight the main types of marginalized people in the history of mankind.

Content:

Who is the marginalized?

This term was first used in psychology in 1928 by Robert Park to mean a person occupying an intermediate position between rural and urban residents. This is someone who previously lived in a village, village, and then moved to the city, while his cultural values ​​acquired during his stay in rural areas, did not fit into the requirements and foundations of urban civilization. His behavior and habits turned out to be unacceptable for the urban social environment. Today, not only people who do not fit into the urban environment are called marginalized.

This term has become quite widespread. Sociological science classifies a person as marginal whose behavior goes beyond the generally accepted norms and rules of any social group. He is between two conflicting groups. It leads to internal conflict person. The marginal is part of two different social groups, but does not accept either of them (does not live by their laws and is not guided by the norms and values ​​accepted in them). From a psychological point of view, a marginalized person physically belongs to one or another social group, but psychologically, morally, and emotionally is outside its boundaries.

The meaning of the word "Marginal"

Marginal (from Latin “marginalis”– extreme or “margo” – edge) – a person living in a social environment, but not accepting the worldview, principles, norms, values ​​imposed by it, moral ideals, Lifestyle. We can say that he is on the edge of the system, outside the laws and orders imposed by the social structure. In the modern Russian language there are many synonyms for the word “marginal”: outcast, black sheep, informal, individual, asocial, nihilist. Example: homeless person, hippie, goth, hermit monk, ascetic.

Also, Karl Marx designated people from the lower strata of society with the term “Lumpen”. In modern times, the two concepts of marginal and lumpen are intertwined with each other.

Signs of marginality:

• disruption of important connections for a person (biosocial, cultural, spiritual, economic) that existed in a previous life;
• constant movement due to lack of attachment to anything;
• internal psychological conflict due to the inability to find oneself and the emergence of mental problems on this basis;
• due to non-compliance with law and order, the ease of becoming an unlawful member of society (offender);
• representatives of the most low layers society (homeless people, alcoholics, drug addicts, etc.);
• the formation of one’s own values ​​and norms, which very often contradict and are hostile to the values ​​of the social group to which the marginalized person belongs.

At first glance, the word “marginal” has only negative connotations. Actually this is not true. Like any phenomenon, marginality has, in addition to negative aspects, And positive, which include the following:

• a different way of thinking and worldview is a source of progressive, innovative activity;
• due to high mobility, the marginalized have a better chance of starting life over again, getting a different education, finding better job, move to a more prosperous area of ​​the city or change your country of residence to a more economically developed one;
• Due to their uniqueness and dissimilarity with others, marginalized people have the opportunity to find an untapped niche in the market for goods and services and engage in a profitable business (open their own business related to the sale of ethnic goods, souvenirs from their previous place of residence). For this reason, marginalized people very often become billionaires.

Marginal personality according to Robert Park

American sociologist Robert Park considered the following to be the main character traits and personality traits of marginalized people:

• anxiety;
• aggressiveness;
• ambition;
• touchiness;
• selfishness;
• categorical views;
• negativism;
• unsatisfied ambition;
• anxiety states and phobias.

In society, marginalized individuals were people with an asocial lifestyle (poor refugees, homeless people, beggars, tramps, people with various kinds of addictions, lawbreakers), who can be classified as representatives of the social bottom. Their living conditions have a significant impact negative impact on their mental condition. Any civilized society lives according to its own established rules, customs and norms. R. Park believed that marginal personality:

1. Rejects any norms and traditions accepted in society.
2. Has no sense of duty towards the society in which he lives.
3. Experiences a strong need to be alone and avoids the company of people.

Important! Most sociological experts and practicing psychologists believe that the margins are a source of cultural growth. He can objectively, without external influence, evaluate any phenomenon and situation, because he is not involved in it, as if isolated. It fills a social group with new ideas, views, introduces new trends, helps members of society to develop, broaden their horizons, look at problems from a different perspective, and instills.

Types of marginalized people

Depending on the reasons for the development of a marginal way of life and the characteristics of their manifestation, marginalized people are divided into the following types:

1. Ethnic– people who, due to various reasons and circumstances, were forced to change their place of residence and found themselves among representatives of another nationality, nationality, ethnic group, and culture. This type is the most difficult to overcome, since a person takes a long time to adapt to a foreign culture, traditions, language, religion and is unable to change his appearance, race and nationality (descendants of mixed marriages, emigrants).
2. Social- associated with the change of one economic system to another (slavery was replaced by feudalism, socialism by capitalism). Entire groups of people cannot immediately find their place and adapt to the new social system.
3. Biological– an ideal society is one that takes care of its weak and sick members. In reality, unhealthy people and people with disabilities or mental abilities has no value for society, they find themselves left behind in life (disabled people, old people, chronically ill people, HIV-infected people, children with Down syndrome and other diseases that limit their legal capacity).
4. Economic– people who for some reason have lost their jobs and the opportunity to have a stable income, have lost property, housing, and super-rich people who, due to their material wealth, become cut off from all other members of society (beggars, homeless people, dependents, billionaires, oligarchs ).
5. Religious– people who do not consider themselves either representatives of any existing religion or non-believers. These are those individuals who believe in their ideals, their gods and create their own churches and sects (prophets, sectarians).
6. Political– appear during turning points in history, during a period of political crisis, when people lose faith in modern politicians and their proclaimed values, they fight against the existing political system, do not trust the authorities and take a hostile civil position.
7. Criminal– when refusal to live according to the laws and moral standards existing in society leads to the commission of an offense (criminals).
8. Age– when the older generation loses contact with youth, the so-called conflict between children and fathers arises.

Examples of marginalized people known in history

Vivid examples of marginalized people in history are entire neighborhoods of New York emigrants, Chinese China Town and Russian Brighton Beach. Many emigrants, due to the prevailing mentality, find themselves left behind American society, unable to integrate into it and accept new values.

Another example is marginals as a subclass Russian society, which arose as a result of the “breaking” of old and the emergence of new socio-economic relations in the 90s of the 20th century. Moreover, the marginalized people then included representatives of both poles of social inequality: the lower strata of society (“the social bottom”) and the so-called “new Russians.”

They were called marginalized all over the world famous writers and poets, artists and creators, geniuses and scientists, who during their lifetime were considered insane and outcasts due to their dissimilarity with others and lack of understanding of their views and creativity by the rest of society. IN modern world there is another group of marginalized people - people who spend most their time at the computer, which leads to a change in their consciousness, the predominance of virtual life over real life.

From history, the marginalized include:

• Diogenes of Sinope - ancient Greek philosopher, student of Antisthenes;
• Stepan Razin - Don Cossack, leader of the uprising of 1670-1671;
• Emelyan Pugachev - Don Cossack, leader Peasant War 1773-1775;
• Ustim Karmelyuk - Ukrainian peasant, leader of the peasant movement in Podolia in 1813-1835.

If you remember the literary heroes:

• James Moriarty - A. Conan Doyle A series of works about Sherlock Holmes;

The concept of “marginality” in sociology

Definition 1

Marginality is a structurally uncertain, transitional, borderline social state of a subject.

Marginality – negative social phenomenon, characterized by a state of “off” from all social institutions: political, economic, cultural, religious, family institutions, etc. People who fall out of their usual social environment and have not joined other communities experience a crisis of self-knowledge and experience strong psychological stress.

Note 1

In classical sociology, a marginal is a person who is on the border of a group (at the same time belonging to it and at any moment capable of freeing himself from the group). Marginal is another, other, stranger, a person who is physically located in the group, but initially did not belong to it.

The presence of a marginalized person in a group shows the group what it is not. He has relative spatial freedom from the group and can always leave it.

Definition 2

A marginal group is a group of people who reject the generally accepted values ​​and traditions of the culture in which they are located, preaching and affirming their own system of values ​​and norms.

R. Park at the beginning of the 20th century developed the theory of marginalized people and marginal communities.

A marginal person according to R. Park is a person located on the border different groups and the conflict that carries with it the collision of these groups, different cultures and societies.

Park's practiced marginality is evident in his mode of action. A conflict situation arises due to belonging to different cultures that are incompatible with each other. A person cannot fully identify himself with any one culture; he is between different cultural and social forms. Uncertainty and unpredictability become a feature of his actions.

Marginality leads to the formation of feelings of anxiety and confusion, significantly increases the possibility of deviations from the norms and rules of the group, and the emergence of a crisis of confidence among individuals.

Varieties of marginality

Individual marginality is characterized by the individual’s partial inclusion in a group that does not fully accept him and by alienation from the group of origin that rejects him as an apostate. In this case, the individual turns out to be a “cultural hybrid”, included in the life and traditions of two (or several) groups.

Group marginality arises as a result of changes in the social structure of society, the creation of new functional groups in politics and economics, which displace old groups and destabilize their social position.

Modern sociology of marginality includes three sections:

1. Structural marginality. Socio-economic study of exclusion, unemployment, study of the negative connotation of marginality, “advanced urban poor”, when the marginalized people of large cities are considered as a result of the advancement and diversification of the city.
2. Cultural marginality. An interdisciplinary field of study of cultural marginality, including anthropology, psychology, exploring the origins of xenophobia, nationalism, considering cosmopolitanism as a form of socio-cultural communication.
3. Sociology of identity. Contradictory personalities are explored. When the boundaries of identity are fluid, the concepts of “ambivalent identity,” “ambiguous,” and “labile identity” are used.

Basic social factor, forming a marginal layer - a border in motion.

The marginalized can act as a more civilized being, predisposed and receptive to change, to everything new. Or as a conservative defending the old, former borders on which his identity depends. He does not want to be included in new boundaries, to identify himself with new formations.

There are various groups of marginality:

• ethnomarginality – groups of people united as a result of migrations or grown up as a result of mixed marriages, belonging to a national minority;
• sociomarginality – groups in the process of incomplete social displacement, loss of social prestige, stigmatization, declassification of marginal groups;
• political marginality – unites groups that oppose the legitimate rules of socio-political life and legal opportunities, deprivation of the right to choose, avoidance of participation in political activity, from access to political influence;
• economic marginality – exclusion from activity and consumption, includes the unemployed and the “new poor”;
• biomarginality – includes groups of people and individuals whose health is indifferent to society (disabled people, the seriously ill, the elderly);
• age marginality – unites groups formed when ties between generations are broken;
• religious marginality – groups outside of confessions;
• criminal marginality – includes criminal elements.

Reasons for marginality

Acquiring the status of a marginalized person can be either forced or become a conscious choice of the individual.

Various reasons can lead to marginality:

• ethnic – forced relocations and migrations in which external, cultural differences, and language barriers hinder integration in the new territory;
• economic – loss of property, sources of income, inability to restore them; economic and financial crises contribute to the emergence of economic marginality;
• political – change of the ruling party, collapse of the current one political regime, loss of trust in political leaders;
• social – vertical or horizontal mobility, the emergence of a new way of life, values, habits; social inequality in society, change social structure society;
• religious – change of religions.

Russian sociologists identify four main factors among the causes of marginality: the transition of society from one socio-economic system to another; deterioration in the standard of living of the population; uncontrolled movements of large masses of people as a result of the destruction of the social structure; devaluation of traditional values ​​and norms.

Who are the marginalized, in what meaning is it permissible to use this term - this is discussed in our article.

The concept of marginality occurs quite often, but can be interpreted in different ways, often carrying a negative connotation.

Marginal: definition

• A marginal is a person whose worldview, principles and way of life do not correspond to the orders and norms accepted in society.
• Marginalized people are also called people who, for one reason or another, have lost their social functions- deny the laws of culture, religion, morality of their nation, country or community, but at the same time do not join other social groups, being outside classes and associations of people.
• Along with this definition, nowadays “marginal personality” is a fashionable concept that affects the idea of ​​freedom and independence, of a person being outside the system, outside the laws imposed by the existing social structure.

The term “marginal” comes from the Latin “margo”, which means edge. Originally, the word “marginalia” meant handwritten notes in the margins of books related to the content. In 1928, the American sociologist R. Park introduced this term to describe the behavior of an individual located outside of existing social groups.

Marginalized people - people who avoid social contacts

The meaning of the word marginal in the explanatory dictionary

In sociology: one who has lost his former social norms behavior and has not adapted to new living conditions (usually about representatives of national minorities, migrants, people from the village). In a general sense: one who does not recognize generally accepted moral standards and rules of conduct.

Marginal: the meaning of the word in simple words

• In the 1930s, marginalized people were residents of rural areas who came to big cities to earn money but never got a job, emigrants who were unable to settle down in their new homeland, as well as people left without work or a roof over their heads. Later the term acquired a broader meaning.
• Marginalized people are people who have lost touch with the society in which they live. The marginalized should not be perceived as second-class citizens. It’s just that their behavior is noticeably different from the stable majority, accepted traditions and foundations.

You can find in the dictionary general definition the term "marginal"

The word marginal: examples of use

In modern Russian, the word marginal has the following synonyms: informal, outcast, individual. Here are a few quotes from the use of the word marginal in literature:

Any of our societies is structured in such a way that the masses and the marginalized share responsibilities among themselves and complement each other. Belief in a miracle turns out to be justified and more promising in everyday life than disbelief, which drives a person into the margins, into drunkenness, into drugs.

Who are the marginalized?

Some modern psychologists and sociologists believe that the marginal personality type is more intellectual and developed, open to change, independent of limiting factors and dual standards of society. The marginalized can be considered completely different people with dissimilar life situations who, due to current circumstances, become outcasts from society:

• People with any physical disabilities.
• People suffering from mental illnesses.
• Representatives of non-traditional religious movements and sects.
• Hermits who deliberately oppose their beliefs to the norms of public opinion.
• People who find themselves below the poverty line, who do not strive to improve their situation.
• People involved in criminal activities.

Distinctive character traits of marginalized people are:

• Negative attitude towards others
• Refusal of social contacts and desire for privacy
• Egocentrism
• Unfulfilled ambitions
• Anxiety and phobias

Appearance marginalized people often differ from accepted norms

Types of marginalized people

Among all types of outcasts of society, 4 main groups of marginalized people can be distinguished:

Economic

This type of marginality depends on changes in the material sphere - loss of work, usual sources of income, cash savings or property. All these factors lead to a reassessment of values, a search for new ways to earn money, and often to anger and abandonment of the usual social circle. The most severe type of economic marginality is a decline in self-esteem due to the inability to improve well-being, alcoholism, drug addiction, and personality destruction.

Social

Social marginality is associated with the desire to achieve a higher social status, to join another social group - a transition to a more prestigious job or a highly paid position, an advantageous marriage. If such an improvement in social status does not last long or ends in failure, the person loses ties with his former environment and finds himself in the position of an outcast.

Political

Political marginality manifests itself against the backdrop of political crises, distrust in government and a decline in civic consciousness. Such people deliberately oppose themselves to society with the existing political system, oppose public opinion, norms and laws.

Ethnic

This type includes people who, for some reason, changed their place of residence and found themselves among representatives of another nationality or ethnic group. In such cases, in addition to the language barrier, migrants have difficulties in perceiving an alien culture and traditions. This is especially pronounced in cases where the new environment differs significantly from the usual one - in religion, way of life, and mentality. Ethnic marginality is the most difficult to overcome, since it is based on factors that a person cannot change - appearance, religious affiliation, customs and traditions.

Forced marginality is associated with excluding oneself from the existing society

Video: Who are the marginalized?

I'm standing on the edge
Although no, only on the verge.
Don't overplay my role,
Do not change the ground under your feet.

I'm marginal, for you I'm anomalous
I am a nihilist, which means I am infernal.
And I have violated the social regime,
But your opinions are just decay!

Marginality as a personality quality – a tendency to differ significantly from the majority in one’s behavior, views on reality, and appearance; to be outside or on the border of one’s social environment, various social groups, systems, cultures, to be to some extent an outcast and to be influenced by them contradictory friends friend of norms and values.

If you believe the biographers of the marginal Marlene Dietrich, she was indifferent to sex, but very susceptible to admiration for her special one - she constantly needed flowers, compliments, all sensual types of worship. As fans demanded sex, she slept with them, resigned to this tedious need of humanity, but got bored in the process. Apparently, this is why she did not know the so-called fidelity and was amazed at the scenes of jealousy that the next lover staged when she, not yet parting with him, allowed herself to be dragged into the next bed, which guaranteed the necessary portion of admiration. Even worldwide fame did not satiate her monstrous appetite - she needed worship like air until old age, which she spent lying in bed and reading magazines.

The Antipodes - the insatiable Dietrich and Greta Garbo, who hid from fame - whom millions of men around the world dreamed of, did not love anyone - were not physiologically capable of this, but fertilized a colossal number of souls with romantic feelings.

Marginality ( marginalis- located on the edge) - sociological concept, denoting the intermediate, “borderline” position of a person between any social groups, which leaves a certain imprint on his psyche. This concept appeared in American sociology in the 1920s to refer to the situation of immigrants’ failure to adapt to new social conditions.

The word received its modern meaning in 1928 thanks to the American sociologist R. Park (1864-1944). According to Park, marginalized people are people who have lost touch with their habitat, social circle, but have not joined the other and the other, that is, those who are, as it were, on the edge, on the border of cultural society. In the first third of the twentieth century in America, people became marginalized villager, who found themselves in cities and could not find employment in them, people long time those who did not have jobs, emigrants who went to the USA for happiness, but did not find it. Gradually, however, the concept of “marginal” acquired a broader meaning: Marginal is an associative person whose lifestyle differs from that generally accepted in society.

Marginality is a term used in sociology to designate the transitional, structurally uncertain status of an individual or social group. Accordingly, people who for some reason do not or cannot join one or another layer of society are called marginalized. The concept of marginality is closely related to social mobility, since any person moving from one layer to another, at some point necessarily becomes marginal, which is usually associated with painful psychological experiences. Usually the state of marginality is not long-lasting, although there are forced or conscious marginalized people (homeless people, alcoholics, various kinds of radicals, etc.) who remain in it for a long time.

The marginalized are characterized by a hostile attitude towards public opinion, unsatisfied ambitions, selfishness, increased sensitivity, some anxiety.

Marginality is neither an advantage nor a disadvantage. This is neither good nor bad. It’s just different for everyone, it’s different. This is some kind of break with one's social environment. This is a path when the values ​​and traditions accepted in society are rejected. This is an attempt to establish our own system of norms.

The marginalized include people who cannot be attributed to a specific social group; they seem to hover on the border of groups that are different from each other, and therefore feel their opposite influence.

Individual marginality is characterized by the individual's incomplete inclusion in a group that does not fully accept him, and his alienation from the group of origin that rejects him as an apostate. The individual turns out to be a “cultural hybrid”, sharing the life and traditions of two or more different groups.

Stalin considered himself a man of Russian culture, pushing aside his Georgian (according to another version - Ossetian) origin; Ivan the Terrible felt like a descendant of the ancient Roman emperor Augustus (Caesar, apparently, did not seem particularly legitimate to him) and the legendary Roman hero Prus, and not Russian - the bastness of what was happening around him probably irritated him with its shapelessness.

Even Charles Darwin, who revolutionized natural science, showed some marginality. In 1874, Charles Darwin told his friend, the director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Joseph Hooker, that he would never learn to operate the typewriter that Remington had just launched. But his son Francis is young and can decide on any dangerous experiment. The brain of sixty-five-year-old Darwin, who just a few years ago had completed “The Descent of Man” and continued to write scientific books, was still working at full strength, but the man who made one of the most radical revolutions in natural science perceived working on a typewriter, which had become a commonplace of mass media, as a dangerous experiment. culture of the twentieth century.

Those who lived during the Soviet era are, in fact, already marginalized. Writer Nadezhda Venediktova expresses an interesting opinion on this matter: « The habit of living alone with two eras, tracking their flavors and twists, was formed after forty - the collapse of the Soviet empire and the sharp somersault from one social formation in another he gave a rare and precious opportunity to sit on two historical chairs at once. And at the same time actively fidgeting, putting his nose and fingers into many cracks that run not only along the facade.

Over time, each of the eras was tamed - in any case, there is a feeling of intimacy, and they balanced out to equal living spaces, each of which highlights the other and allows us to learn in comparison, at the same time improving my position as a marginalist - not belonging completely to anyone, not even myself, so that maintain at least the hypothetical possibility of an objective perception of life. The devil knows whether it is actually achievable, but it’s worth a try. A deliberate flirtation with eras coincided in time with the long-developed ability to be aware of my life almost every second - as Berdyaev used to say in such cases, I constantly transcend; however, it turned out that this activity requires too much energy, so you have to regularly net so as not to precipitate ahead of time. It’s especially pleasant to drift between yourself and humanity, drowning in its fierce diversity.”

Sociologists identify the following main types of marginality:

1) social marginality itself (for example, groups that have broken ties with the previous stratum, but have not yet joined the new stratum);

2) economic marginality, which comes down mainly to the phenomenon of unemployment, both forced and intentional (in the latter case, the unemployed person lives on money paid to him as benefits by the state or other structures);

3) political marginality, in which individuals are not satisfied existing forms political life;

4) religious marginality, in which a person is outside the confessions and cannot make a choice in favor of one of them.

As philosopher Enver Izmailov argues, people do not accept anything from the marginalized. That is, instead of fulfilling duties, instead of being inside the situation and being together, a person following the path of spiritual development, as it were, separates himself, he is special, “ White blood”, blue, more precisely, but in any case inhuman, that is, she is so ... “spiritual”. And people perceive this as marginality; this, in essence, is marginality. Therefore, when a person is stable in his spiritual worldview, then this stability lies in the fact that he transforms the world in which he lives: his family, the society in which he is located, work - everything there is spiritualized. Not because he preaches to everyone there, so to speak, not necessarily. We need to talk, of course, about God, about philosophy, but we need to talk when there is already a “credit of trust,” when a person already understands that you are not marginalized, that you have your own path that protects you from suffering.

Peter Kovalev