Lost illusions in Interwar Europe: nation and self in Robert Musil

The work of Robert Musil Der Mann ohne Eigenschaften is not only considered one of the heights of the twentieth century novel, but also constitutes an essay of deep political theoretical depth on the nation and nationalism in interwar Europe. The crisis of the Austro-Hungarian Empire serves as the r...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autor: Máiz, Ramón
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2022
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/142024
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/142024
https://doi.org/10.12795/araucaria.2022.i49.01
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Nacionalismo
Nacionalidades
Imperio Austro-Húngaro,
Robert Musil
Identidad colectiva
Nationalism
Nationalities
Austro-Hungarian Empire
Collective identity
Descripción
Sumario:The work of Robert Musil Der Mann ohne Eigenschaften is not only considered one of the heights of the twentieth century novel, but also constitutes an essay of deep political theoretical depth on the nation and nationalism in interwar Europe. The crisis of the Austro-Hungarian Empire serves as the reason for the author to develop a deep critique of some of the fundamental theoretical foundations of modern political thought. This article shows how the systematic criticism to which essentialist and racist nationalism is subjected in the work is based on a review of two of the philosophical assumptions that make it possible: the linear conception of time and history, and the metaphysics of the subject. The analysis explores the deep relationship that exists in the work between individual identity (the subject) and collective identity (the nation), between the crisis of the modern unitary subject as an autonomous individual and the difficulties of the construction of a pluralist and democratic concept, inclusive of Nation.