CONTEMPORARY AXIOLOGICAL GRADATIONS: ATROPHY OF VALUES OR AN ETHICAL RENAISSANCE?

Abstract

The article explores contemporary axiological gradations through the prism of Ukrainian wartime discourse, addressing the tension between the apparent erosion of values and the possibility of an ethical renaissance. The authors focus on the transformation of identity and authenticity under conditions of full-scale war, interpreting them not merely as sociocultural constructs but as ethically and ontologically grounded phenomena rooted in national dignity. It is argued that the contemporary crisis of grand narratives, intensified by digital communication, postmodern relativism, and the fragmentation of meanings, has led to the diffusion of stable value reference points and to the weakening of coherent identity frameworks.
At the same time, the article substantiates the thesis that wartime realities provoke a re-actualization of value-based metanarratives rather than their окончательну disappearance. Within this context, Ukrainian identity is conceptualized through the essential triad “national dignity / identity / authenticity”, which functions as an ethical-axiological prism for personal and collective self-identification. The study demonstrates that this triad is formed at the intersection of axiological reflection and lived ethical experience, rather than as the result of abstract universalist imperatives.
Drawing on postmodern philosophy, communicative practical philosophy, responsive phenomenology, and the philosophy of dialogue, the authors analyze competing ethical paradigms – universalist macro-ethics and the ethics of authenticity – and argue that, in contemporary Ukrainian realities, priority is increasingly given to authenticity understood as personal moral responsibility toward oneself, the Other, society, and history. Particular attention is paid to the role of alterity, dialogue, and the ethical response to aggression in shaping value orientations during wartime.
The article concludes that contemporary Ukrainian axiological discourse should be understood as an open and dynamic project. The formation of authentic values is shown to be inseparable from personal experience, civic belonging, and ethical choice, thereby framing the current moment not as an atrophy of values, but as a complex and unfinished ethical renaissance.