METAPHYSICS OF MONEY IN THE WORKS OF HONORÉ DE BALZAC AND FYODOR DOSTOEVSKY

The author examines similarities and differences in the aesthetic interpretation of the theme of money in terms of social realism of Balzac and Christian realism of Dostoevsky. Such notions as “human mystery”, “a dark side of human nature”, the “ME law”, “the law of love” are introduced to achieve the aforementioned objective. As part of these notions, the article analyzes artistic types and reflection of both writers and shows the equalizing, reducing, transforming and compensating functions of the monetary absolute, which becomes a common equivalent of human freedom and personality and creates conditions for a new inequality. The author reveals anthropologic consequences caused by dominating principles of utilitarianism and monetarist perception, highlighted in the novels by French and Russian writers, that facilitate perversion and inversion of a hierarchy of values, displacement of spiritual and moral fundamentals, mental impoverishment, entropy and nihilism in the degrading society.