Wilhelm Reich's Listen, Little Man! is an enjoyable read addressed to us, the little men who put other little Fuhrers, Stalinists, and generals in power because we are afraid to live. Based on his earlier work, Reich's analysis of sexual repression, the oppressive Western family structure, and the recent experience of fascism and World War II lead to a somewhat angry in tone essay to us, but Reich's work hits upon several points made in Fromm's Escape from Freedom. Since both authors appear to have built upon the works of Marx and Freud, there are bound to be similarities in how both approach the question of mental health, love, totalitarianism, or other topics. However, Reich's persecution complex and fashion for promoting his theory of orgones throughout the essay weakens the larger thrust of the work, even as his accessible essay persuasively challenges the reader to think beyond nation, race, groups or classes to consider the human condition after World War II. Most perceptively, Reich did not see fascism as going away after WWII, and something of the crowd mentality persists.
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