THE TORMENTS OF NARCISSISM
ISOLDE CHARIM IN CONVERSATION WITH FRANZ SCHUH
THE TORMENTS OF NARCISSISM
How is it that we subordinate ourselves to circumstances? Or, to paraphrase Spinoza, how is it that „men fight for their servitude as if it were for their salvation“? This question must be asked anew at all times, but even more so in times of crisis and uncertainty. The answer today must be: It is narcissism, narcissism as a social demand on every individual: You must become more than you are, you must become your ideal. But what does it mean for society when this anti-societal principle becomes the dominant ideology?
In her new book, philosopher Isolde Charim explains with impressive clarity what makes us voluntarily submit. At the Kreisky Forum, she explores these „torments of narcissism“ in conversation with Franz Schuh.
Isolde Charim, born in Vienna, studied philosophy in Vienna and Berlin, works as a freelance journalist and regular columnist for "taz" and "Falter". In 2006, she was awarded the City of Vienna Journalism Prize. She has been a scientific curator at the Bruno Kreisky Forum since 2007. Books include: "Lebensmodell Diaspora. On modern nomads" (ed. with Gertraud Auer 2012). In spring 2018, Zsolnay published the volume "Ich und die Anderen. How the new pluralisation is changing us all", for which she was awarded the 2018 Philosophy Book Prize. In 2022, she received the Austrian State Prize for Cultural Journalism.
Franz Schuh, born in Vienna in 1947, studied philosophy, history and German literature. He was awarded the Leipzig Book Fair Prize in 2006, the Austrian Art Prize in 2011 and the Johann Heinrich Merck Prize for Literary Criticism and Essay in 2021. His most recent publications with Zsolnay are Sämtliche Leidenschaften (2014), Fortuna. Aus dem Magazin des Glücks (2017) and Lachen und Sterben (2021). In 2022, he was honoured with the Bruno Kreisky Prize for the Political Book for his life's work.
Isolde Charim:
The agonies of narcissism. On voluntary submission
Hardcover, 219 pages, September 2022 Zsolnay-Verlag, 24,- €
ISBN 978-3-552-07309-8