The paradox of tolerance in Western academia

Abstract

The subject of the research is the modern educational environment of Western countries. The object of the study is the system of tolerance and the mechanisms of its functioning in the educational environment of Western countries. The author examines in detail the system of tolerance and the mechanisms of its functioning on the example of Western educational institutions. Since in the modern educational environment of the Euro-Atlantic states tolerance is perceived differently than in Russia, special attention is paid to the philosophical understanding of the current state of the phenomenon and its reflection by the Western scientific community. The author uses works of both philosophical and social, pedagogical orientation in order to reveal the main features through their prism. In the course of the study, it was found that the mechanisms of tolerance in the Western educational environment contradict the idea of tolerance for the Other. It was concluded that the boundaries of tolerance in Euro-Atlantic educational institutions are blurred: they are not clear either to the teaching staff or to the students themselves. The author traces the Nietzschean idea of ressentiment in the actions of minorities, constantly opposed to the majority, regardless of what rights and opportunities this majority gives them. The study also made it possible to identify the paradox of tolerance in the Western educational environment: although the struggle for the rights of the oppressed is officially proclaimed, the oppressed themselves avoid discussions on the topic of equal opportunities within the framework of the educational process, because the Western structure of tolerance allows them to avoid discussing pressing issues, while maintaining and even building on the benefits of a tolerant education system. In addition, the author found that Western society usually does not perceive tolerance as part of an individual's worldview, which leads to the fact that in the education of Western countries it becomes a socio-political tool.