Aleksei A. Pleshkov
- Leading Research Fellow:Poletayev Institute for Theoretical and Historical Studies in the Humanities
- Associate Professor:Faculty of Humanities / School of Philosophy and Cultural Studies
- Aleksei A. Pleshkov has been at HSE University since 2008.
Education and Degrees
- 2016
Candidate of Sciences* (PhD)
- 2012
Master's
HSE University
According to the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED) 2011, Candidate of Sciences belongs to ISCED level 8 - "doctoral or equivalent", together with PhD, DPhil, D.Lit, D.Sc, LL.D, Doctorate or similar. Candidate of Sciences allows its holders to reach the level of the Associate Professor.
Study Abroad Experience / Internships
University of Oxford, UK. Academic visitor, Philosophy Department. Participation in the research project “Power Structuralism in Ancient Ontologies” (October 2013–March 2014)
Warsaw University, Poland. Student, Institute for Interdisciplinary Studies Artes Liberales. Participation in the summer school “Classical Tradition and Authority in Social Dimension” (April–May 2009)
Awards and Accomplishments
- Best Teacher – 2018
Winner of the HSE University Best Russian Research Paper Competition – 2021

Young Faculty Support Program (Group of Young Academic Professionals)
Category "New Researchers" (2011-2012)
HSE Academic grant for publications (2019-2020)
HSE Best Teacher:Lyceum student’s Choice
HSE Academic grant for publications (2018-2019)
HSE Certificate of Merit (December, 2017)
HSE Certificate of Acknowledgement (November, 2013)
Winner of the international students’ research works competition Time in the mirror of science (Kiev, Ukraine) 2011
Oxford Russian Fund scholarship (2010–2011)
Winner of the annual student’s research works competition at HSE 2009
Winner of the annual student’s research works competition at HSE 2008
Continuing Education / Professional Retraining
Python for Researchers (2020, NRU HSE)
Academic English (2017, NRU HSE)
Responsibilities
- Cooperation with the Institute’s partners
- Coordination and supervision of the Institute’s research groups and projects
- Participation in the research projects of the Institute
- Deputy Chairman of the of HSE Faculty of Humanities’ Academic Council (since 2020)
- Member of the Competition Committee for the creation of the Research and Teaching Laboratories in the structure of the HSE Faculties (since 2018)
Employment history
2008 – present: Poletayev Institute for Theoretical and Historical Studies in the Humanities, National Research University Higher School of Economics (NRU HSE);
2017 – present: School of Philosophy & Cultural Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, NRU HSE;
2015–2019: HSE Lyceum
Books1
Edited Books1
Articles15
- Article Pleshkov A. A., Surman J. Book reviews in the history of knowledge // Studia Historiae Scientiarum. 2021. Vol. 20. P. 629-650. doi
- Article Верниковская А. В., Плешков А. А. Моральная обязательность благотворительности и «Голод, богатство и мораль» Питера Сингера // Философия. Журнал Высшей школы экономики. 2021. Т. 5. № 2. С. 237-253. doi
- Article Pleshkov A. A. Time as a Political Resource: Early Greek Thought and Plato’s Philosophy of Time // In Gremium. Studia nad Historią, Kulturą i Polityką. 2020. No. 14. P. 207-221. doi
- Article Плешков А. А. Другая вечность: мгновенность материи у Платона // Платоновские исследования. 2019. № 2. С. 11-41. doi
- Article Плешков А. А. Классикализация и рецензирование в современной аналитической теологии: случай неоэтернализма // Новое литературное обозрение. 2018. № 150. С. 148-163.
- Article Pleshkov A. A. Plato’s Theory of Language: the Isomorphism of Kosmos and Logos in the Timaeus // Problemos. 2017. No. 91. P. 128-140. doi
- Article Плешков А. А. Образы вечного в ранней греческой мысли // Диалог со временем. 2017. № 4 (61). С. 139-158.
- Article Плешков А. А. Понятие «вечность» в современной аналитической теологии: вызов темпорализма // Государство, религия, церковь в России и за рубежом. 2017. № 2. С. 264-289.
- Article Плешков А. А. Понятие ΑΙΩΝ в космологии Платона // Историко-философский ежегодник. 2014. С. 29-52.
- Chapter Плешков А. А. Когда боги в ссоре с титанами: к проблеме времени в древнегреческой философии и культуре // В кн.: Философия. Язык. Культура (вып.4) / Отв. ред.: В. В. Горбатов. Вып. 4. СПб. : Алетейя, 2013. С. 322-334.
- Article Плешков А. А. О времени и вечности в философии Платона и Плотина // Вестник Русской христианской гуманитарной академии. 2013. Т. 14. № 3. С. 216-223.
- Chapter Плешков А. А. Концепция индивидуальной души у Плотина: «напряженная гармония» как метод // В кн.: Проблема «Я»: философские традиции и современность / Под общ. ред.: В. Н. Порус. М. : Альфа-М, 2012. С. 61-75.
- Article Плешков А. А. Тропами экзистенциализма: Леонид Андреев как философский писатель // Вопросы философии. 2012. № 9. С. 109-120.
- Chapter Плешков А. А. Понятие AION в древнегреческой философии: концепция полноты бытия-времени // В кн.: Философские, политические и социально-психологические аспекты проблемы времени. К. : Центр учебной литературы, 2011. С. 47-63.
- Article Плешков А. А. Статус языка в политической философии Томаса Гоббса // Социологическое обозрение. 2011. Т. 10. № 3. С. 29-40.
Reviews & Reports4
- Article Плешков А. А. Множественные миры Купера и Шимански // Социология власти. 2018. № 2. С. 247-258. doi
- Article Плешков А. А. Пограничье Платона. Размышления над книгой Сары Броди «Nature and Divinity in Plato’s Timaeus» (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012) // Платоновские исследования. 2016. Т. 5. № 2. С. 279-289.
- Article Плешков А. А. «Круглый стол»: «“Классический” университет – традиция или архаика» // Новое литературное обозрение. 2010. № 103. С. 439-443.
Translations2
- Article Сингер П. Голод, богатство и мораль / Пер. с англ.: А. В. Верниковская, А. А. Плешков, С. А. Акаев // Философия. Журнал Высшей школы экономики. 2021. Т. 5. № 2. С. 254-269. doi
- Chapter Дастон Л. Дисциплинирование дисциплин: академии и единство знания // В кн.: Науки о человеке: история дисциплин / Отв. ред.: И. М. Савельева, А. Н. Дмитриев. М. : Издательский дом НИУ ВШЭ, 2015. Гл. 4. С. 105-123.
Interview2
- Article Pleshkov A. A., Surman J. J. Objectivity and Beyond. Interview with Lorraine Daston and Peter Galison // IQ HSE: Research and Education Website. 2020
- Article Плешков А. А. Не для прошлого, а для будущего. Интервью с проректором НИУ ВШЭ М. М. Юдкевич о книгах «Поколения ВШЭ» // Вопросы образования. 2014. № 2. С. 256-261.
Preprints1
Guest-Edited Special Issues
Section «History of Scientific Knowledge», Studia Historiae Scientiarum, 2021, Vol. 20, URL: https://ojs.ejournals.eu/SHS/issue/view/volume-20) (co-edited with Jan Surman)
Philosophy. Journal of the Higher School of Economics, 2019, Vol. 3, No. 1: Knowing the Unknowable, URL: https://philosophy.hse.ru/issue/view/800 (co-edited with Olga Alieva)
Conferences
- 2021International Workshop «Change and Changemakers in Ancient Philosophy» (Зиген). Presentation: What Makes Time Change? The Temporal Status of the Receptacle in Plato’s Timaeus
- 2019CRISIS/ACADEMIA (Москва). Presentation: University and Aretē
- Symposium Platonicum XII (Париж). Presentation: The Dialogue between Parmenides and Timaeus: the Concept of Eternity in Plato
- 2018Time after Time (Bonn). Presentation: Before Time: Eternity and Instantaneousness in Plato
- 2017Reception of Ancient Political Ideas and Models in Modern European Culture till the end of the 20th Century. Current Research and Future Perspectives. (Zielona Góra). Presentation: Time as a Political Resource: Towards Plato’s Understanding of Time
- 2014Power Structuralism in Ancient Ontologies (Oxford). Presentation: Instantaneousness—Time—Eternity as Modes of Existence in Plato’s “Timaeus”
- 2013Power Structuralism in Ancient Ontologies (Oxford). Presentation: In Search of Eternity: Concept AIŌN in Plato’s Timaeus
- 2010Conceptual History: Concepts, Metaphors, and Discourses (Moscow). Presentation: Two Eternities of Heraclitus: the Term AION from Homer to Aristotle
Courses (2022/2023)
- Philosophy of Science (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 4 year, 1, 2 module)Rus
- The Philosophy of the Ancient World (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 1, 2 module)Rus
Courses (2021/2022)
- From Archaic to Modern’ (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 1, 2 module)Rus
- Practical Philosophy: What and How Determines Human Behavior? (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 3, 4 module)Rus
- Research Seminar "Philosophical Anthropology"-1 (Master’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 1-4 module)Rus
- The Philosophy of the Ancient World (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 1, 2 module)Rus
- Past Courses
Courses (2020/2021)
- Back to the Future: Ancient Texts and Concepts in the Focus of Modern Philosophy (Optional course (faculty); Faculty of Humanities; 1-4 module)Rus
- Practical Philosophy: What and How Determines Human Behavior? (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 3, 4 module)Rus
- Research Seminar "Genres and Methods of Philosophical Research" (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 1-4 module)Rus
- Research Seminar "Philosophical Anthropology"-1 (Master’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 1-4 module)Rus
- The Philosophy of the Ancient World (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 1, 2 module)Rus
Courses (2019/2020)
- Practical Philosophy: What and How Determines Human Behavior? (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 3, 4 module)Rus
- Reseach Seminar "Logic, Epistemology and Methods of Philosophical Research" (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 3 year, 1-4 module)Rus
- Research Seminar "Philosophical Anthropology"-1 (Master’s programme; Faculty of Humanities; 1 year, 1-4 module)Rus
- The Philosophy of the Ancient World (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 1, 2 module)Rus
Courses (2018/2019)
- Philosophy (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Social Sciences; 1 year, 3, 4 module)Rus
- Philosophy (Bachelor’s programme; Faculty of Law; 1 year, 1, 2 module)Rus
- Practical Philosophy: What and How Determines Human Behavior? (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 3, 4 module)Rus
- The Philosophy of the Ancient World (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 1, 2 module)Rus
Courses (2017/2018)
- Practical Philosophy: What and How Determines Human Behavior? (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 3, 4 module)Rus
- Sophocles, Plato, Alexander and beyond (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 3, 4 module)Rus
- The Philosophy of the Ancient World and of the Middle Ages (Minor; Faculty of Humanities; 1, 2 module)Rus
A special section edited by Aleksei Pleshkov and Jan Surman is published in Studia Historiae Scientiarum
Section «History of Scientific Knowledge» dedicated to academic reviewing in the history of knowledge is published in Studia Historiae Scientiarum. Guest editors of the special section – Aleksei Pleshkov and Jan Surman
New article by Aleksei Pleshkov
The article “Time as a Political Resource: Early Greek Thought and Plato’s Philosophy of Time” by the director of Poletayev Institute, Aleksei Pleshkov, was published in the journal “In Gremium. Studies in History, Culture and Politics” (No 14, 2020).
How to Combine University Values with the H-Index
Experts at HSE University and other universities discussed what constitutes a university virtue and whether it is possible to assess scientific and scholarly accomplishments based solely on quantitative criteria. At the conference ‘University HR Policies: Managing Staff Involvement’, Aleksei Pleshkov, Director of the Poletaev Institute for Theoretical and Historical Studies in the Humanities at HSE University, gave a talk entitled ‘In Search of Academic Ethics: Goodness, Virtues and Happiness’.
Poletaev Readings Consider New Turns In and Away from Theory in the Humanities
The Poletaev Readings, dedicated to the memory of Andrey Poletaev, one of the founders of the Poletaev Institute for Theoretical and Historical Studies in the Humanities (Russian acronym — IGITI), is a major annual event of the Institute. The event was set to mark its 10th anniversary in 2020, but due to the pandemic, the anniversary forum has been postponed to 2021. In its place, the organizers have arranged the Poletaev Readings 9¾, which were held online. HSE News Service spoke with the event organizer and some of the participants.
Interview with Lorraine Daston and Peter Galison by Alex Pleshkov and Jan Surman
What role has objectivity played in the history of science and what role does it play today? How are innovations in science possible? What is the interrelation between research practices, epistemic virtues, and the scientific self? How are epistemic virtues affected by relations of science and the public, the state, the funders, the industry, media, etc.? Alex Pleshkov and Jan Surman discuss these and many other questions with Lorraine Daston and Peter Galison, the authors of "Objectivity," one of the most important books of the 21st century in the field of the history of knowledge. The talk is available as video and as text.
Aleksei Pleshkov participated in a conference on Plato in Paris
Director of IGITI Aleksei Pleshkov took part in Symposium Platonicum XII: Plato’s Parmenides, which was held on July 14–19, 2019 in Paris (France). His talk was devoted to Plato’s concept of eternity in dialogues the Parmenides and the Timaeus. The conference was organised by the International Plato Society, with the support of INHA: Institut national d'histoire de l'art, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, Ambassade de Grèce à Paris and 10 more educational and research institutions of France.
HSE Has a Volleyball Team, and You Can Join
Did you know that HSE has a volleyball team? Read on to find out how it all started, why students, alumni, and teachers play, and how to join.
Aleksei Pleshkov participated in the international workshop of the Society for Philosophy of Time
On February 23 Deputy director of IGITI Aleksei Pleshkov took part in the international workshop “Time after Time”, organized by the Society for Philosophy of Time at the University of Bonn.
Aleksei Pleshkov became a member of the Society for Philosophy of Time (SPoT)
Research fellow of IGITI Aleksei Pleshkov became a member of the Society for Philosophy of Time (SPoT). SPoT is a network for researches working on the philosophy of time. This includes the metaphysics of time, the nature of persistence through time as well as linguistic references to the present moment. SPoT explicitly encourages an interdisciplinary approach, including results from physics, psychology and linguistics.
Aleksei Pleshkov participated in a conference at the University of Zielona Góra
Aleksei Pleshkov participated in a conference "Reception of Ancient Political Ideas and Models in Modern European Culture till the end of the 20th Century" at the University of Zielona Góra (Poland).
Masterclass with Julia Leikina "Scholarly Review and Establishing a Sub-discipline"
On March 24, 2017, Julia Leikina, Ph.D., a research fellow at University College London, talked about how scholarly reviews can help in establishing a sub-discipline. She used the naval history of eighteenth-century Russia as an example.
Alexey Pleshkov's new paper in "Problemos"
Alexey Pleshov, junior research fellow of IGITI, has published a paper "Plato's Theory of Language: the Isomorphism of Kosmos and Logos in the Timaeus" (vol. 91, 2017).
Andrey Poletayev Memorial Readings
On September 9, 2016, VI Poletayev Memorial Readings entitled "Natual Sciences and Humanities: New Interaction (Dis)Order" were held at the Higher School of Economics. Among the participants were two guest speakers: Karl Hall from Central European University (Budapest) and Kornelius Borck from Lübeck University (Lübeck).