1968: “Apocalypse  at the Gate”, “Socialism with a Human  Face” and the Sexual Revolution?

Abstract. The article opens the journal issue, in which the leading theme is “the problem 1968”. Although half a century has passed since the significant events that have stirred up almost the entire world (from Paris to Prague, from the U.S. and Mexico to China), in the opinion of the authors, still researchers not only sharply diverge in their interpretation of this phenomenon, which, however, is typical for the assessment of most serious problems, but also have different views on the “scale” of the 1968 events. Probably at least three aspects of this problem are advised to study: first, it is necessary to analyze and evaluate these events “by themselves”, to try to reconstruct (remember the famous words of Leopold von Ranke!), “how it really happened”; second, it is important to follow how these events were perceived by contemporaries and how they were transformed in the memory of subsequent generations; finally, it is interesting to study the reflection and impact of the 1968 events on world culture, including both “high” achievements (in the field of philosophy, historiography, literature and art) and everyday practices (in the field of moral and religion, family and sexual relations, etc.). The editorial article reviews the most significant factors, as the authors believe, that influenced the events of 1968, both ideological and socio-political, and also raises the question about the nature of this movement.

Keywords: 1968 problem, youth protest, Red May, sexual revolution, socialism with a human face, historical memory, the heritage of 1968.