Thomas Mann’s Politics of Life, 1914–1933

This article reconstructs Thomas Mann’s peculiar politics. From 1922 to 1933, Mann mobilized Germany’s Romantic tradition to challenge the radical right, infusing his perspective with a Dionysian sensibility. Section 1 discusses historiography, outlines Mann’s cultural approach to politics, introduces the key notion of ‘life’, and delineates the contrast between Apollo and Dionysus. Reflections of a Nonpolitical Man (1918) is the subject of section 2, while section 3 deals with the period 1922-1933, when Mann highlighted the political relevance of illness and sexuality. To him, acknowledging human vulnerability and the complexity of life was essential for a moderate, humane republic. Section 4 positions Mann’s contribution within the context of other Weimar-era uses of the Dionysian. In the final section, Mann’s approach is connected, albeit only indicatively, to some strands of contemporary political philosophy.