Janosch Schobin: »Einsamkeit, die soziale Frage unserer Zeit?«

»Einsamkeit, die soziale Frage unserer Zeit?«

– with Michael Kämper-van den Boogaart

Loneliness is considered a social issue of our time. There is talk of an »epidemic of loneliness.« Surprisingly, however, levels of loneliness in Germany had long been relatively stable or even declining. With the COVID-19 pandemic, this situation has changed abruptly. It is therefore time to assess why: Which social dynamics contribute to processes of social isolation? Upon closer examination, the question becomes: Which types of lonely individuals are actually increasing or decreasing in number at a time? The woman of the 1950s who was involuntarily without a partner, for example, is as clearly a child of her time as the young man of the 2020s, who believes that feminism has permanently alienated women from him, is one of our own. The question, therefore, is how social change and the different types of loneliness are interconnected.

JANOSCH SCHOBIN: Sociologist; Private lecturer and research associate at the Loneliness Network at the Institut für Sozialarbeit und Sozialpädagogik in Frankfurt am Main. Among other things, he develops the Loneliness Barometer for the BMBFSFJ there. His primary research interests include the sociology of food, the sociology of friendship, and loneliness research. Alongside his diverse academic activities, Janosch Schobin provides consultancy services on the development of programs to combat loneliness. For example, he supported the Fourth Commission of Inquiry of the North Rhine-Westphalia State Parliament with an expert report on loneliness and social change. His most recent publications cover topics including the impact of gender inequality on loneliness prevalence, the connection between loneliness and trust in democratic institutions, and the stigmatization of loneliness. In 2025, his latest book »Zeiten der Einsamkeit. Erkundungen eines universellen Gefühls« [»Times of Loneliness: Explorations of a Universal Feeling«], was published.

The lecture will be held in german.

Overview of the Lecture Series

»Alone together. Figures of Loneliness Between Pathology and Euphoria«

Loneliness, understood as involuntary solitude, has become a major concern in Western industrial societies. The experiences of the pandemic, in particular, has brought the social consequences of isolation sharply into focus and placed loneliness at the centre of public attention. Today, loneliness is increasingly being recorded statistically as a social burden, diagnosed as a symptom of »lost communities«, and addressed politically as a societal risk. Countermeasures range from social and medical prevention programs and national strategies to the establishment of dedicated political offices. The ubiquity of loneliness diagnoses forms the starting point for the Mosse Lectures in the winter term of 2026/27.

Moving beyond a purely pathological perspective, the focus will lie on the fundamental ambivalence of experiences of loneliness, reflected in the conceptual distinction between »loneliness« and »solitude.« Figures of loneliness have long be imagined in philosophy, literature, music, and the visual arts, not only as expressions of social isolation, but also as conditions of aesthetic experience, existential self-reflection, and individual freedom. In the 19th century, advocates of a programmatic, at times euphoric conception of loneliness in modernity linked the retreat into nature with projects of nature writing.

The Mosse Lectures trace the persistence and transformation of this tradition in contemporary literature, film, and popular culture, examining in particular the relationship between »Eleanor Rigby« and »Lonesome Hero,« female, male, and queer figures of loneliness who navigate the spectrum between isolation and self-determination. At stake are also the the gender-specific, cultural and political connotations of being alone.

The lecture series will be complemented by an accompanying film program, which will be shown on six evenings in January and February 2027 in collaboration with the Zeughauskino at Deutsches Historisches Museum in Berlin.

Other Events in this Series:

– Diane Enns: »The Ambiguity of Solitude« | December 3, 2026

– Christian Petzold: »Gespenster« | January 14, 2027

– Jessica J. Lee: »The Wilder World: Retreating from the Peace and Quiet of Nature« | January 28, 2027

Accompanying Film Program at the Zeughauskino in the DHM Berlin [Pei Building]:

January 12, 2027, 7 p.m.

Die innere Sicherheit [Germany 2000, Dir: Christian Petzold]

January 19, 2027, 7 p.m.

Certain Women [USA 2016, Dir: Kelly Reichardt]

January 26, 2027, 7 p.m.

All of Us Strangers [GB/USA 2023, Dir: Andrew Haigh]

February 2, 2027, 7 p.m.

Her [USA 2013, Dir: Spike Jonze]

February 9, 2027, 7 p.m.

Perfect Days [Germany/Japan 2023, Dir: Wim Wenders]

February 16, 2027, 7 p.m.

Days [Taiwan 2020, Dir: Tsai Ming-liang]