Radio interview

Radio program on Radio Rheinwelle

Attac on site

WIR campaign – in Wiesbaden – out together

Broadcast date: November 26, 2021, from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Link to the program: https://www.mediathek-hessen.de/index.php?ka=1&ska=medienview&idv=24270

The pandemic and Erich Fromm’s relationship theory.
Elias Jungheim in conversation with Rainer Funk

What would have happened if there had been no social media, no emails, text messages, messaging and internet connectedness in the face of contact bans, quarantine requirements, social distancing rules and mandatory masks? It’s hard to imagine surviving without these opportunities to be connected. For many, it was almost unbearable to have to stay at home, no party, no scene, no celebrations, no sport, no pub, no nightlife, no atmosphere, no singing, no literature circle, no kindergarten, no school, no lecture hall…

The fact that self-awareness and togetherness are so dependent on the sensual, the physical, touch, the atmospheric, facial expressions, the shared, makes it abundantly clear that humans are relational beings and that being electronically connected alone is not enough to live.

Erich Fromm’s psychology is primarily concerned with the forms of relatedness practiced in society. This perspective opens up far-reaching insights into the suffering caused by the pandemic and its consequences – and perhaps also a new mindfulness for direct and solidary cooperation.

Elias Jungheim, board member of the International Erich Fromm Society, seeks an interview with Rainer Funk, who edited Erich Fromm’s writings and was Fromm’s assistant.