Robert Pfaller

“We’re like passengers on the Titanic”

Philosophy is relevant to everyday life: Robert Pfaller—Vienna, Linz—thinks, writes, and teaches philosophy.(Bild: Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

What does the future hold? Are new dictators on the horizon? And what is life like for a thinker? Robert Pfaller is a philosopher who analyzes the world in a way that’s “relevant to everyday life.” In an interview with the “Krone,” the Vienna-born professor, who holds a chair at the University of Linz, discusses the “sore spots” of the present.

Robert Pfaller is one of the best-known philosophers in the German-speaking world. In his books, the Viennese scholar—who teaches at the University of Art and Design in Linz—examines the big questions of our time: freedom, pleasure, and social cohesion.

In “Klare Striche zu wunden Punkten” (Clear Lines on Sensitive Issues), just published by S. Fischer, he explains why we often feel so powerless and why he wants to redefine the present. In doing so, he directly addresses many things that are going wrong. In his interview with *Krone*, he also takes a critical look at his own field.

“Krone”: Philosophy very often has an air of elitism about it. Yet philosophers even appear on TV shows. Why is that?
Robert Pfaller: Philosophy deals with the questions everyone must ask themselves: What is a good life? What is just? Can I convince others? Or does everyone have their own taste? And much more. Philosophy must therefore be like soccer—where almost everyone has a passionate opinion on how the national team should be lined up. But not everyone would dare to judge whether the team should play with a three- or four-man back line. That’s where the specialists come in. Unfortunately, some philosophers go too far in this regard—but fortunately, there are others who manage to present difficult ideas in a way that’s easy to follow.

Philosophy must be like soccer—where almost everyone has an opinion on how the national team should be lined up.

Robert Pfaller über die Leidenschaft am Denken

According to our school textbooks, philosophy very often drove social change in earlier centuries—I’m thinking of Kant and the Enlightenment. Looking back, that’s how we perceive it today. Does philosophy also play a role in our present, and where does its influence end?

Philosophy always has a voice when those in power feel the need to justify themselves. This has played an important role in bourgeois society since the late 18th century. But when only government-aligned propaganda machines and dubious think tanks (note: “Denkfabriken” in German) shape public opinion, reasoned argument has lost almost all influence in society.

The danger does not lie in the machine becoming too intelligent, but in us seizing the opportunity to become more foolish ourselves...

Robert Pfaller über  Künstliche Intelligenz (KI)

Which chapter of human history would you most urgently rewrite, because, from today’s perspective, it has always been abused by those in power?

The present. Never before—not even under fascism—have people felt so powerless when it comes to the crucial questions of survival. By that I mean the environmental crisis, but also the threat of nuclear war. Or the fact that the majority of people are being driven into extreme poverty by so-called “austerity measures,” while money flows into the arms industry—that is, into the very sector that accelerates the very danger it supposedly protects us from. We’re like passengers on the Titanic, watching the iceberg come toward us. But the captain and the officers are drunk, and the ship’s wheel has been sold to souvenir vendors.

What do you personally consider to be the most pressing question facing humanity today?

To me, humanity’s greatest challenge seems to be overcoming—or preventing—feudal society, including its modern offshoot: fascism. Unfortunately, we are currently heading back toward such a feudal society.

Speaking of AI: What does the future hold for us with artificial intelligence?

An enormous power of direction and control, concentrated in the hands of a select few super-rich individuals. Aside from that, the danger doesn’t lie in the machine becoming too smart, but rather in us seizing the opportunity to become dumber ourselves—and even finding relief in doing so.

Tell us one more thing: Do you enjoy being a philosopher? What do you like about it? And what do you really dislike about it?

Robert Pfaller’s latest book(Bild: S. Fischer)

Tell us one more thing: Do you enjoy being a philosopher? What do you like about it? And what do you really dislike about it?

What I can’t stand are philosophers who speak as if the point were to provide a benevolent world government with the one idea it’s still missing. Good philosophers, on the other hand, are those who reveal something that seems reasonable to be nonsensical—or something that seems absurd to be reasonable. That’s how you become wiser, and in the process, you often have a little laugh.