»Nur das Kind«: Zerbrochene Gemeinschaften in Stefan Zweigs »Clarissa« im Licht der Individualpsychologie Alfred Adlers

Summary »Only the child«: Broken communities in Stefan Zweig’s »Clarissa« in light of Alfred Adler’s Individual Psychology. This essay explores the relevance of Alfred Adler’s concept of »Gemeinschaftsgefühl« (social interest) to the interpretation of Stefan Zweig’s posthumously published novel »Clarissa«. It argues that Adler’s individual psychology offers a valuable framework for understanding the novel’s central tensions between individual striving and collective responsibility, particularly in the context of the First World War and the collapse of a supranational European identity. While Zweig’s early work was more attuned to Freudian psychoanalysis, this essay traces how »Clarissa« increasingly reflects Adlerian concerns - especially in its portrayal of disrupted social connectedness, the breakdown of ethical responsibility, and the failure of characters to transcend private neuroses in service of the greater good. Through close readings of the key characters, this essay shows how the absence, distortion, or delayed awakening of Gemeinschaftsgefühl becomes central to the novel’s structure. The discussion also situates Zweig’s novel in a broader context, aligning its ethical vision with his late writings on war, pacifism, and human solidarity. Ultimately, the essay positions »Clarissa« as an underappreciated literary engagement with Adler’s vision of the »ethical ideal«, in which psychological well-being and social responsibility are inseparable.