The title of the issue of the periodical “Człowiek i Społeczeństwo” we propose, inviting you to contribute, is Furor Melancholicus, Furor Divinus. Melancholy, Dread and Ways of Rescue. This title is supposed to encourage reflection on the phenomenon of dread which, bringing destruction and driving into melancholy, can as well mobilize to search for unobvious ways of release. We accost this reflection urged by reality. Lulled by the story of human sapience and reason, for too long we abode by a blissful conviction that all our affairs will turn out in a way beneficial to everyone. Now all of a sudden we wake up in the kingdom of triumphant unreason: we look with horror at what is going on in social and political life and question ourselves whether by any chance cynicism, arrogance, superbia and aggression of this or that billionaire and politician did not sprout on the growing medium of our own sloth, cowardice and naiveness.
The experience of dread lies at the heart of ancient Greek drama. According to Aeschylus’s words it is “the awful grace of God” (charis biaios) which, falling drop by drop upon our hearts, instills wisdom. Let us then take advantage of this grace and let us reflect on the phenomenon of dread and horror, as well as on melancholy and folly resulting thereof.
We invite representatives of all human and social sciences to share their thoughts on the topic we propose. Yannis Stavrakakis in his Routledge Handbook of Psychoanalytic Political Thought writes that “over the past 20 years psychoanalysis has emerged as one of the most important resources in the ongoing reorientation of contemporary political theory” (p. 11). For this reason we would like to focus primarily on reflection combining psychoanalytical thought with contemporary political philosophy. We are, however, open, to a variety of other approaches.
We allow ourselves to have timid hope that dread shall turn out once more to be the mother of prudence and an impulse to write interesting, inspiring and moving texts.