Utopianism in the Work of Zygmunt Bauman - Sociologi - Aalborg ...
Utopianism in the Work of Zygmunt Bauman - Sociologi - Aalborg ...
Utopianism in the Work of Zygmunt Bauman - Sociologi - Aalborg ...
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style nightmares” (<strong>Bauman</strong> 2000a:15). We have gone almost <strong>in</strong> a straight l<strong>in</strong>e<br />
from utopia <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> solid and s<strong>in</strong>gular to <strong>the</strong> present day lack <strong>of</strong> ability to th<strong>in</strong>k<br />
differently and alternatively altoge<strong>the</strong>r. In short, <strong>Bauman</strong>’s sociology deals with<br />
how to turn current social dystopias <strong>in</strong>to utopias without turn<strong>in</strong>g <strong>in</strong>to coercion,<br />
heteronomy and estrangement and how sociologists may play a significant role<br />
<strong>in</strong> this transformative task.<br />
Utopia Lost and Found<br />
Upon visit<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong> United States a couple <strong>of</strong> years ago, I was struck be <strong>the</strong> ap-<br />
parent lack <strong>of</strong> <strong>in</strong>terest <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> work <strong>of</strong> <strong>Bauman</strong>. Although everybody appeared to<br />
know about him, very few had <strong>in</strong> fact read any <strong>of</strong> his works, let alone were fa-<br />
miliar with his central position with<strong>in</strong> contemporary sociology. The few col-<br />
leagues who had attempted to come to grips with what many <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong>m saw as a<br />
strange European flavoured philosophical type <strong>of</strong> social th<strong>in</strong>k<strong>in</strong>g, that to many<br />
appeared at best redundant and at worst irrelevant, quickly discovered <strong>the</strong> depth<br />
and <strong>the</strong> unavoidable and <strong>in</strong>valuable source <strong>of</strong> wisdom embedded <strong>in</strong> his work.<br />
Thus, <strong>in</strong> many ways <strong>the</strong> general reception <strong>of</strong> <strong>Bauman</strong>’s utopian-oriented work<br />
was similar to that <strong>of</strong> ano<strong>the</strong>r central th<strong>in</strong>ker on utopianism, Karl Mannheim,<br />
when his Ideology and Utopia was first published <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> mid-1930’s (cf. Kettler<br />
& Meja 1994). This masterpiece was also labelled as an almost obscure k<strong>in</strong>d <strong>of</strong><br />
philosophical <strong>the</strong>oris<strong>in</strong>g unsuited for practical application or utility. One <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong><br />
exceptions to this rule <strong>of</strong> neglect though is, for example, <strong>the</strong> work <strong>of</strong> respec-<br />
tively George Ritzer (1997) and Steven Seidman (1998) who have been <strong>in</strong>stru-<br />
mental <strong>in</strong> mak<strong>in</strong>g <strong>Bauman</strong>’s reception <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> United States anyth<strong>in</strong>g but negli-<br />
gible. Most scholars I encountered dur<strong>in</strong>g my extended stay be<strong>in</strong>g acqua<strong>in</strong>ted<br />
with his ideas, however, admitted turn<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong>ir back on <strong>Bauman</strong> and his social<br />
<strong>the</strong>oris<strong>in</strong>g due to its abstract almost philosophical character. A colleague even<br />
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