ՀԵՂԱՓՈԽԱԿԱՆ ՖԱՆԱՏԻԶՄԻ ԳԱՂԱՓԱՐԸ ԱՆԱՏՈԼ ՖՐԱՆՍԻ «ԱՍՏՎԱԾՆԵՐԸ ԾԱՐԱՎԻ ԵՆ» ՎԵՊՈՒՄ

Abstract

The article explores the central theme of Anatole France’s masterpiece, The Gods Are Athirst - revolutionary fanaticism and its destructive consequences. The author reveals that the noble ideals of the French Revolution (liberty, equality, and virtue) transform into their opposites through an inexorable mechanical logic. Through the character of Evariste Gamelin, the article analyzes the psychology of a “virtuous executioner” who, blinded by abstract dogmas and neo-classical aesthetic “purity,” loses his humane face and sense of reality. By contrasting Gamelin’s fanaticism with Brotteaux’s Epicurean skepticism, the article concludes that any system, prioritizing abstract ideas over human life, inevitably leads to totalitarianism.