Profesor v kríze – na príklade románu Perlmannovo mlčanie

Abstrakt

This paper analyzes and interprets the emotionality of the main character, Philipp Perlmann, in relation to other male protagonists in the novel Perlmann’s Silence (German original 1995, Slovak translation 2023), situating it within the broader context of the crisis in the academic world and the humanities, as well as the crisis of masculinity. Through the personal narrator Philipp Perlmann, Pascal Mercier reproduces several masculine stereotypes. The protagonist embodies the image of an academic undergoing both a personal crisis (the death of his wife) and a professional one (connected to the decline of the humanities). The latter, in particular, evokes a sense of shame and fear of failure, rooted in his conviction that he does not meet others’ expectations of his professional role. This pressure is further reinforced by social norms of masculinity, which define weakness, vulnerability, or insecurity as threats to male identity. Consequently, silence emerges as a significant cognitive and symbolic motif. Mercier demonstrates a profound understanding of the crisis in the humanities, exacerbated by neoliberal pressures. However, he does not propose a systemic solution; instead, he introduces the process of translation as a means of rediscovering the protagonist’s academic identity.