Neil McLaughlin
- Published in print:
- 2021
- Published Online:
- January 2022
- ISBN:
- 9781529214581
- eISBN:
- 9781529214628
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Policy Press
- DOI:
- 10.1332/policypress/9781529214581.003.0005
- Subject:
- Sociology, Comparative and Historical Sociology
Despite the enormous influence Fromm had on the emergence of public sociology his name is not associated with this tradition and Burowoy and others generally don’t mention him. How did this happen? ...
More
Despite the enormous influence Fromm had on the emergence of public sociology his name is not associated with this tradition and Burowoy and others generally don’t mention him. How did this happen? This chapter tells the story of how a debate with Herbert Marcuse in Dissent magazine in the 1950s and the publication of a Marxist self-help-like book The Art of Loving (1956) doomed Fromm’s reputation as a serious sociology for over 50 years, especially in the English-speaking world. We play special attention to the role of Lewis Coser in this story that tells us much about sociological professionalism, the dogmatic nature of Marcuse’s critical theory and how popular writing can damage scholarly reputations.Less
Despite the enormous influence Fromm had on the emergence of public sociology his name is not associated with this tradition and Burowoy and others generally don’t mention him. How did this happen? This chapter tells the story of how a debate with Herbert Marcuse in Dissent magazine in the 1950s and the publication of a Marxist self-help-like book The Art of Loving (1956) doomed Fromm’s reputation as a serious sociology for over 50 years, especially in the English-speaking world. We play special attention to the role of Lewis Coser in this story that tells us much about sociological professionalism, the dogmatic nature of Marcuse’s critical theory and how popular writing can damage scholarly reputations.
Lawrence J. Friedman and Anke M. Schreiber
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231162593
- eISBN:
- 9780231531061
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231162593.003.0006
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
This chapter focuses on Erich Fromm’s 1956 book The Art of Loving, which catapulted him into the international spotlight and exposed his work to a mass audience. The Art of Loving was an ...
More
This chapter focuses on Erich Fromm’s 1956 book The Art of Loving, which catapulted him into the international spotlight and exposed his work to a mass audience. The Art of Loving was an international phenomenon, and by 1999 it had been translated into thirty-two languages and had sold more than twenty-five million copies. Through The Art of Loving, Fromm joined social commentators such as David Riesman and John Kenneth Galbraith as a thinker on the Left who conveyed his thoughts to a mass readership at a time when McCarthyism held currency. Indeed, he became a cult figure and icon to the Left. This chapter considers Fromm’s life in Mexico, where he founded the Sociedad Psicoanalitica Mexicana and became mentor to the first generation of locally trained Mexican psychoanalysts; his meeting with Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, prominent Japanese scholar, historian, and master of Zen Buddhism; his courtship of Annis Freeman; and his perspective that self-love was mandatory for a loving relationship.Less
This chapter focuses on Erich Fromm’s 1956 book The Art of Loving, which catapulted him into the international spotlight and exposed his work to a mass audience. The Art of Loving was an international phenomenon, and by 1999 it had been translated into thirty-two languages and had sold more than twenty-five million copies. Through The Art of Loving, Fromm joined social commentators such as David Riesman and John Kenneth Galbraith as a thinker on the Left who conveyed his thoughts to a mass readership at a time when McCarthyism held currency. Indeed, he became a cult figure and icon to the Left. This chapter considers Fromm’s life in Mexico, where he founded the Sociedad Psicoanalitica Mexicana and became mentor to the first generation of locally trained Mexican psychoanalysts; his meeting with Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, prominent Japanese scholar, historian, and master of Zen Buddhism; his courtship of Annis Freeman; and his perspective that self-love was mandatory for a loving relationship.
Lawrence Friedman
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- November 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780231162593
- eISBN:
- 9780231531061
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Columbia University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7312/columbia/9780231162593.001.0001
- Subject:
- Psychology, Social Psychology
Erich Fromm was a political activist, psychologist, psychoanalyst, philosopher, and one of the most important intellectuals of the twentieth century. Known for his theories of personality and ...
More
Erich Fromm was a political activist, psychologist, psychoanalyst, philosopher, and one of the most important intellectuals of the twentieth century. Known for his theories of personality and political insight, Fromm dissected the sadomasochistic appeal of brutal dictators while also eloquently championing love—which, he insisted, was nothing if it did not involve joyful contact with others and humanity at large. Admired all over the world, Fromm continues to inspire with his message of universal brotherhood and quest for lasting peace. The first systematic study of Fromm’s influences and achievements, this biography revisits the thinker’s most important works, especially Escape from Freedom and The Art of Loving, which conveyed important and complex ideas to millions of readers. This book recounts Fromm’s political activism as a founder and major funder of Amnesty International, the National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy, and other peace groups. It reveals Fromm’s support for anti-Stalinist democratic movements in Central and Eastern Europe and his efforts to revitalize American democracy. It further reveals Fromm’s direct contact with high officials in the American government on matters of war and peace while accessing a deeper understanding of his conceptual differences with Sigmund Freud, his rapport with Neo-Freudians like Karen Horney and Harry Stack Sullivan, and his association with innovative artists, public intellectuals, and world leaders. The book portrays a man of immense authenticity and spirituality who made life in the twentieth century more humane than it might have been.Less
Erich Fromm was a political activist, psychologist, psychoanalyst, philosopher, and one of the most important intellectuals of the twentieth century. Known for his theories of personality and political insight, Fromm dissected the sadomasochistic appeal of brutal dictators while also eloquently championing love—which, he insisted, was nothing if it did not involve joyful contact with others and humanity at large. Admired all over the world, Fromm continues to inspire with his message of universal brotherhood and quest for lasting peace. The first systematic study of Fromm’s influences and achievements, this biography revisits the thinker’s most important works, especially Escape from Freedom and The Art of Loving, which conveyed important and complex ideas to millions of readers. This book recounts Fromm’s political activism as a founder and major funder of Amnesty International, the National Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy, and other peace groups. It reveals Fromm’s support for anti-Stalinist democratic movements in Central and Eastern Europe and his efforts to revitalize American democracy. It further reveals Fromm’s direct contact with high officials in the American government on matters of war and peace while accessing a deeper understanding of his conceptual differences with Sigmund Freud, his rapport with Neo-Freudians like Karen Horney and Harry Stack Sullivan, and his association with innovative artists, public intellectuals, and world leaders. The book portrays a man of immense authenticity and spirituality who made life in the twentieth century more humane than it might have been.
