Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov: Education as a Question of Life

“N.I. Pirogov was the first among us to regard the matter of upbringing from a philosophical standpoint and saw in it … – the question of life” © K.D. Ushinsky

 

215 years ago, Nikolai Ivanovich Pirogov (1810–1881) was born – a Russian surgeon of world renown, a classic of Russian pedagogical science.

Retired from the military-medical department, he devoted the following five years of his life to the Russian school. For his progressive ideas in enlightenment and the creation of Sunday schools for workers, he was soon dismissed from his administrative-pedagogical position.

The most complete collection of N.I. Pirogov's pedagogical articles and works can be seen in the “Rare Book Museum” collection at RUDN University. In the jubilee anthology “Selected Works” (2019), two editions of his main article on the new system of upbringing and education – “Questions of Life” (1856) – were published for the first time.

From 1861, N.I. Pirogov, continuing to be listed under the Ministry of Public Education, guided young scholars abroad and published his works on military field surgery. He was retired from this department under pressure from Austria (the Viennese court), which condemned N.I. Pirogov for saving the life of the Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi (1807–1882).

“Pirogov's act with Garibaldi could not increase my respect for him only because it is impossible to respect anyone more than I respect him” © K.D. Ushinsky

“Questions of Life. Diary of an Old Doctor” is the last unfinished work of the Russian scientist. One can familiarize oneself with this book in the RUDN library. It not only sets forth his autobiography but also his worldview, in which he attached paramount importance to the spiritual development of man and considered the main task of pedagogy to teach a person to resolve questions about the meaning and purpose of their life.