EXISTENTIAL DIMENSIONS OF WAR

Abstract

The article is dedicated to the study of the relevant topic of war in the context of the global transformations the world is undergoing. It addresses issues related to the existential challenges faced by an individual when experiencing radical changes
in existence. The article traces the line of the individual9s acceptance of war as a new normality. By analyzing current military
conflicts, such as the Russo-Ukrainian War, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and the Syrian War, it is possible to conclude the
ontological uniformity of war as such, when thinking in existential terms. In this case, the article aims to make existential discourse relevant again in Ukrainian science and to explore the dimensions of war in three different planes: reality, actuality,
and virtuality. Paper analyzes the existential challenges faced by an individual in a war situation.
Research methodology. The research is based on hermeneutic and systemic approaches, which allow for the systematization and interpretation of the experience of war within the context of cultural studies and the philosophy of culture.
Results. The results lie in the identification of four main existential challenges embedded within the dimensions of war
(reality, actuality, and virtuality). These challenges faced by the individual contribute to the establishment of the normalization
of war as the only possible state in which society finds itself. Specifically, the following factors should be noted: 1) mental and
territorial division within a single group based on regional principles, 2) blurring of the concepts of truth and reality, 3)
destruction of living space, and 4) existential rupture as factors influencing the normalization of war.
Novelty. The novelty lies in outlining the interconnection between the dimensions of war (the planes it pertains to), the challenges within them, and temporality as a factor that transforms human existence by normalizing the state of war as the only possible reality.
The practical significance. The research can be used as a starting point for seeking solutions to the general existential crisis faced by a society in a state of war. Oppressed by external circumstances and internally accepting war as a new normality,
society may find a way out of this situation by choosing different development strategies, making decisions at a critical bifurcation point. This could provide an opportunity for the reorganization of society based on the principles of humanism.