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Psychologie des foules
a study of the popular mind
First published 1896 · 258 pages
A chilling, foundational dissection of how individual reason evaporates the moment we join a mob.
What it feels like
Reading this foundational text feels like stepping into a dimly lit lecture hall where a cynical, brilliant professor is dismantling everything you thought you knew about human rationality. The pace is steady and deliberate, driven by sweeping, aphoristic prose that makes bold declarations about the subconscious mind of the masses. There is an undeniably ominous mood that permeates the text, as the clinical analysis of mass persuasion and collective behavior reveals the terrifying fragility of individual reason. It is a sobering, intellectually rigorous experience that forces you to look at political rallies, social movements, and even everyday group dynamics with a newfound, slightly paranoid clarity. This book will deeply satisfy readers who are fascinated by the darker, irrational undercurrents of society and the mechanics of power.
- Mood
- clinical
- ominous
- contemplative
- sobering
- Tone
- authoritative
- cynical
- analytical
- sweeping
- detached
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- loss of individual rationality · power of the collective · mass persuasion · fragility of reason · political manipulation
- The writing
- Assertive, aphoristic, and sweeping, characterized by grand 19th-century sociological declarations.
- The arc
- Moves from a clinical curiosity about human nature to a sobering realization of the fragility of individual reason.
- Who it's for
- Readers fascinated by mass psychology, political science, and the darker, irrational undercurrents of human society.
Content notes
- outdated 19th-century racial and gender views
- discussions of mob violence
About the book
"Gustave LeBon's The Crowd is not only a classic, but one of the best-selling scientific books in social psychology and collective behavior ever written. Here, LeBon analyzes the nature of crowds and their role in political movements. He presents crowd behavior as a problem of science and power, a natural phenomenon with practical implications. Originally published in 1895, LeBon's book was the first to expand the scope of inquiry beyond criminal crowds to include all possible kinds of collective phenomena. Its continuing significance is evident even in the Los Angeles riots of 1992 in which LeBon's theories were cited in testimony." "LeBon emphasizes the various areas of modern life where crowd behavior holds sway, particularly political upheavals. He focuses on electoral campaigns, parliaments, juries, labor agitation, and street demonstrations. At the same time, his treatment of crowds is far from complimentary. In a new introduction to this edition, Robert A. Nye presents a broad analytical understanding of the relationship between power and knowledge in crowd theory. He also discusses the historical circumstances and the various personalities who have shaped our understanding of crowds. Nye emphasizes The Crowd's continuing usefulness to cultural historians, psychologists, sociologists, and political scientists. He also places LeBon in a rich tradition of European social theory."--BOOK JACKET.
Description from Open Library.
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