8 Best Robert Musil Books

The Confusions Of Young Törless

This novel was Musil’s first published work. It is set in a boarding school in an area of the Habsburg Empire.

This novel is a deep study of an adolescents development as he learns to come to terms with his emotions.

In this novel, this adolescent experiences some sexual encounters, led by two other boys. Torless is both repelled and fascinated by his experiences.

This novel is based on Musil’s own experiences at boarding school. It is a very progressive novel that displays transgressive sexuality and violence in a non-judgemental way.

This work by Musil displays an interesting and non-moral outlook on life through the eyes of a teenage boy.

The Man Without Qualities Vol. 1

This is a fantastic novel that is set in Vienna before the breakout of World War I. It follows Ulrich, an ex-soldier who finds himself drafted into some plans for the 70th jubilee celebrations of Emperor Franz Josef.

There has been a new translation of this novel, linked above, which was published in two volumes.

This is the first translation that displays the novel as a complete text, and it also includes material that was unpublished during Musil’s life.

This novel is considered Musil’s magnum opus. It is considered a very influential novel when it comes to modernism.

Five Women

This is a newly translated English version of five of his short stories. This work contains his distinctive style, which cannot be mistaken.

The tales of Grigia and Tonka are the first to open the volume. They explore the sexuality of some peasant women.

Musil is well known for exploring the link between mind and body, and these two stories display this theme well.

It looks at the idea of society, and the ways that these things impact society. However, they do not eradicate the truth of the carnal body.

In these stories, Musil’s view of women and femininity sway from fear to adoration, and the range of perception is very intriguing to a reader.

These stories are extravagant and sensual, and they are very original. Musil has extreme literary influence, and these stories have great significance.

Flypaper

Flypaper is a brilliant novel that captures a scene by exploring every detail and symbolic aspect of the story with beautiful skill.

This book contains nine different stories. They explore holidaymakers, tales of war, and a fly’s flight against the grip of flypaper.

This is a very unique book, with all 9 stories told originally. The ideas behind each story are filled with imagery, and you will walk away so much richer than when you began after reading.

This is well worth a read if you are looking into Robert Musil.

Intimate Ties: Two Novellas

Intimate Ties is a fantastic story in modernist literature. It explores female sexuality through the eyes of two women.

One of the women in this story is married and is unfaithful to her husband. The other is caught in a love triangle.

This novel was released in 1911, and it is Robert Musil’s second book. The two novellas in this story are The Temptation of Silent Veronica and the second is The Culmination of Love.

Each of these stories is centered around a woman who is experiencing sexual and romantic problems.

The two are both influenced by memories of their past when it comes to their present actions.

Musil’s prose is very experimental, and it gives the readers an insight into the type of prose that Musil would go on to write in The Man Without Qualities.

Thought Flights

This novel explores the challenges, secrets, and mundanities that occur in interwar life in Berlin and Vienna.

The tests presented in this novel were selected by Genese Grill, a translator, and placed together under the title Thought Flights.

The material in this book was originally published in newspapers, magazines, and journals. It is very unique because the distance between us and Musil does not show.

Despite the temporal, cultural, and geographical differences, our troubles are very familiar in the things that Musil is addressing.

This book is a comment on contemporary complacency and the age of money. It is very Modernist in its nature and style. 

Musil is thought to be one of the great modernists of his time, and his flair with language highlights this.

The book explores the psyches of those around him with fantastic insight, and he is the master of metaphor. His storytelling is fantastic, and his humor shines through.

Musil’s work brings both excitement and beauty into the world, and this prose highlights this.

Agathe: Or, The Forgotten Sister

Agathe, who this novel is based on, is the sister of Ulrich. Ulrich is the illusive man ‘without qualities’ that is the center of Musil’s unfinished novel The Man Without Qualities.

For many years Agathe and her brother did not speak, but when they are reunited after their father’s death, their relationship rekindles.

They look very similar, however, Agathe, who is separating from her husband, is much more inquiring than Ulrich.

The two embark on some holy conversations, where they discuss identity, sexuality, and sensuality. They are both pursuing a true form of being together.

Agathe gives more depth to the fascinating story behind The Man Without Qualities. It reveals a new clarity to the book that is considered to be so multi-dimensional. 

This side of the novel is said to have meant the most to Musil himself and inspired him in his writing.

The translator of this story is fantastic. Joel Agee captures the unsettling flow of the book. 

Precision And Soul

The essays in this collection were written by Musil between 1911 and 1937. They offer a fascinating perspective on intellectual life and modern society.

These essays explore the themes of science, mathematics, capitalism, and nationalism.

They also look at the role of women, and the rise of women as writers. Musil seems to be writing to find his way, and these essays make this very clear.

He is trying to understand and find his way in a world where moral systems are in decay.