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Bo Isenberg

Bo Isenberg

Associate Professor | Senior Lecturer

Bo Isenberg

A modern calamity – Robert Musil on stupidity

En modern kalamitet – Robert Musil om dumheten

Author

  • Bo Isenberg

Summary, in English

The writings of the Austrian novelist and essayist Robert Musil provide sociology with vital problems and reflections. Indeed, Musil introduces discussions that extend conventional understanding of modernity – sociology’s general object of analysis. The article focuses on two major sets of questions in Musil’s work: the shapelessness of man and the relation between reason and sentiments. Both problems are essential in that genuine twentieth-century experience which Musil calls functional stupidity: the functionalisation of the mind to collective demands of the party, the race and the nation. The article discusses Musil’s arguments by relating them to central propositions in classical sociology (Simmel, Weber, Kracauer, Tönnies, Park). Classical sociology, in turn, is defined as a sub-discourse of classical modern reflection.

Department/s

  • Sociology

Publishing year

2018-02-02

Language

English

Pages

55-75

Publication/Series

Journal of Classical Sociology

Volume

18

Issue

1

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

SAGE Publications

Topic

  • Sociology (excluding Social Work, Social Psychology and Social Anthropology)

Keywords

  • Klassisk sociologi
  • kontingens
  • människans gestaltlöshet
  • modernitet
  • Musil
  • dumhet
  • totalitarism

Status

Published

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1468-795X