Degeneration

20 hrs. 4 min.

Language Russian

Author Max Nordau

Narrator Olga Andreeva

Description

Nordaud became world-famous for his works on political and economic forecasts for the development of society over the next 100 years. His best-known work is “Degeneration,” in which he made an original attempt to interpret the “decline of Europe.” He criticized from a moral standpoint “degenerative art” produced by the urbanism of modern civilization. He shared the ideas of Cesare Lombroso.

Nordaud begins his study with medical and sociological interpretations of the factors that, in his view, gave rise to the phenomenon of degeneration he describes. He speaks about widespread moral decay, the overthrow of moral values. Then, using works by leading writers, artists, composers, and thinkers of the century—Oscar Wilde, Friedrich Nietzsche, Richard Wagner, Henrik Ibsen, and others—he shows their predisposition to this kind of art, which one would expect from people with mental illnesses (hysterics, neurasthenics, and so on). At the same time, Nordaud points out that their creations are a product not only of personal circumstances, but also of social conditions: because of the common sickly atmosphere in which Europe found itself during the period in question, the success of this kind of art was ensured.

The ideas Max Nordau expressed became widely known. Notions such as degeneration and degeneracy were adopted as serious medical terms. The concept of degenerative art was later taken up by the National Socialists.