The category of meaning in the notes of M.M. Bakhtin of the 1960s – early 1970s

Abstract

This article is about the study of approaches to the category of meaning in the notes and extracts of M.M. Bakhtin in the 60s – early 70s. The problematics of meaning are directly discussed in the 2nd and 4th notebooks of notes and extracts, as well as in a number of scattered sheets. The content of the category of meaning in Bakhtin’s notes has not previously been specifically considered. It remains uncertain and requires special study. The significance of the study of the category of meaning in notes and extracts is determined by the fact that it allows clarifying the place of the category in the context of Bakhtin’s holistic philosophical and scientific worldview. The study’s purpose is to clarify the content of the category of meaning in the records and extracts of Bakhtin of the 60s – early 70s and, in general, in the late work of the scientist and thinker. As a result of analyzing the texts of working records, four main aspects of Bakhtin’s consideration and use of the category of meaning in those texts, which are firmly related to the context of his philosophical and scientific activity, are revealed: 1) meaning is understood personalistically; 2) meaning is realized only through the word (statement); 3) meaning is universal, linked to the category of the symbol; 4) meaning is dialogic.