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individual or specific human community is regarded as a product of cultural
creativity. The latter is the relentless process of the development, compliance with
the material and spiritual needs, a variety of human abilities, production and
realization of dreams and desires, setting and achieving specific life goals and

programs.

5. Correlation between the notions ‘culture’ and ‘civilization’ in the

culturological concepts
Russian philosopher M. Danilevskiy (1822 – 1885) in his book 'Russia and
Europe' (1869) specified large communities called ‘cultural historical types’ in the

historical past. He contended that these cultural historical types or original
civilizations arranged in the chronological order played a significant role in the
history of humanity. The scientist mentioned the following civilizations: 1)

Egyptian, 2) Chinese, 3) Assyrian-Babylonian-Phoenician, Chaldean or old
Semitic, 4) Indian, 5) Iranian, 6) Hebrew, 7) Greek, 8) Roman, 9) new Semitic or
Arabian and 10) German-Romanic or European. The last cultural historical type
was the Slavic and Northern American ones being at an early stage.

M. Danilevskiy formulated the regularities in the development of cultural
historical types and spoke about the period of civilization as a relatively short

period of efflorescence of the spiritual activity (rise of culture) of any cultural
historical type. At the same time, the author denied the existence of a civilization
common to all mankind. This was a reaction to an attempt to pose a western
European civilization as a model of civilization common to all people.

German philosopher O. Spengler (1880-1936) viewed ‘civilizations’ as
decadent phases of highly developed cultures. When a great nation or empire was
in its prime time, he characterized its social and intellectual patterns as a culture’.

When it passed its prime (time) and became ossified or fixed, he called it a
‘civilization’.
Each culture in this sense is a separate person following the stages of birth,

growth, maturity and death which are also analogous to the seasons. Spring is the
beginning (birth and infancy), followed by summer (youth), then autumn
(maturity) and finally winter (old age and decay). The crucial distinction for

Spengler is between ‘culture’ and ‘civilization’. For Spengler a culture is a unique
creation of various cosmic forces which eventually degenerates into a civilization,
meaning big city life dominated by the desire for money. Once this stage is reached
then death will certainly follow. Cultures begins with the awakening of a great

soul. Thus Spengler does not see one grand culture, nor does write about the
development of a unified human culture or the history. He believes that so many
separate souls, so many cultures.

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