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Free-floating intellectuals or free-floating intelligentsia (German: Freischwebende Intelligenz) is a term from the sociology of knowledge that was used by the sociologist and philosopher Karl Mannheim in 1929, but was originally coined by the sociologist Alfred Weber.[1] It includes the members of the intelligentsia, whose relative independence as a socially undefined class allows them to break away from the normative thinking of their environment and to act independently of social class conditions. The intellectual floats (relatively) freely above things and tasks and is therefore less tied to ideology than other people. Karl Mannheim applied this to the political as well as the economic and cultural areas. According to Mannheim, the socially free-floating intellectuals is unbound, critical and sensitive. It is able to represent pluralistic views and have a positive impact on social conditions.[citation needed]
Mannheim sought a way out of the dilemma that the human mind moves within social bonds and biases in contemplation, reasoning and knowledge, but on the other hand wants to and, in his opinion, can find unadulterated truths.[2][3][4][5][6]
- ^ Mikl-Horke, Gertraude (2001). Soziologie: Historischer Kontext und soziologische Theorie-Entwürfe. Oldenbourg. ISBN 978-3-486-25660-4.
- ^ Mannheim, K. (1936). Ideology and Utopia: An Introduction to the Sociology of Knowledge. Routledge. In this work, Mannheim discusses the influence of social contexts on knowledge and the possibility of attaining objective truths despite these influences.
- ^ Kuschel, K. (2007). "Karl Mannheim: Sociology of Knowledge and Ideology." In The Routledge Companion to Social Theory, edited by Anthony Elliott. Routledge. This text provides a comprehensive overview of Mannheim's theories and their implications.
- ^ onlinelibrary.wiley.com - The New Blackwell Companion to Social Theory. Colin Loader Chapter 15. Karl Mannheim. Book Editor(s):George Ritzer, Jeffrey Stepnisky. First published: 15 April 2011. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781444396621.ch15
- ^ theanarchistlibrary.org - Red, Black, and Objective. The topic of intellectual objectivity is challenge.
- ^ citeseerx.ist.psu.edu - HISTORY OF THE USE AND ABUSE OF VISUAL METAPHORS. Discussion of ideas about objectivity and normativity with regard to Karl Mannheim's writings.