The intellectual odyssey of Karl Mannheim: On sociology and political education

Abstract The article considers the intellectual odyssey of the Hungarian sociologist Karl Mannheim (1893–1947) during the three phases of his career: as a Jewish intellectual and philosopher in Hungary during the communist revolution of 1919, as an exile in the German Weimar Republic from 1920 to 1933, and as a refugee from Nazi Germany in England from 1933 to his death in 1947. It considers his transition from philosophy to sociology through his Habilitation degree at the University of Heidelberg which qualified him as a university teacher. Mannheim's publications in German are noted including those on structures of thinking, conservatism and generations. Mannheim's appointment as a lecturer in sociology at the London School of Economics and publications in English, including Ideology and Utopia (1935), on the sociology of knowledge, culture, education, planning in a democratic society, and the public role of the social scientist are noted. There was also Mannheim's association with the Christian discussion group The Moot and appointment to a Chair at the Institute of Education, University of London. The article concludes by noting critics of Mannheim and with an assessment of his work and relevance today.