Towards an Infinite Synthesis of Eventualities: On Coincidence in Robert Musil’s Novel The Man without Qualities
Agnbieszka K. HAAS
Zakład Literatury i Kultury Niemieckiej, Instytut Filologii Germańskiej, Wydział Filologiczny, Uniwersytet Gdański, ul. Wita Stwosza 51, 80-316 Gdańsk, Poland , Polandhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-2768-5981
Abstract
The characters in Robert Musil’s Man without Qualities display different responses to chance, which is defined as an unpredictable coincidence impacting the fictional world. The main protagonist, Ulrich, contemplates the principle in question throughout the novel. Chance is synonymous in this context with a multitude of possibilities or unconscious choices, and it may be a sign of an approaching chaos in history. The paper addresses the question of how and why the category of chance, or coincidence, is employed in the plot of the novel. The analysis points out to the ways in which Musil approaches the phenomenon of chance, as well as to the implications of his philosophical standpoint for an entire spectrum of ontological issues, such as the meaning of existence, free will, fate, and divine intervention.
Keywords:
Robert Musil, Ernst Mach, coincidence, destinyZakład Literatury i Kultury Niemieckiej, Instytut Filologii Germańskiej, Wydział Filologiczny, Uniwersytet Gdański, ul. Wita Stwosza 51, 80-316 Gdańsk, Poland https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2768-5981
