{"product_id":"2026200013412-secondhand-the-unknown-quantity","title":"The Unknown Quantity","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBook: Good\u003cbr\u003eJacket: No dust jacket\u003cbr\u003ePages: Good\u003cbr\u003eCondition remarks: Condition as shown in image\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat happens when a man of pure reason is forced to confront the irrational depths of grief, love, and human longing? The Unknown Quantity by Hermann Broch chronicles the story of Richard Hieck, a brilliant young mathematician whose orderly, logic-driven world is shattered by the sudden death of his brother, plunging him into an existential crisis that no equation can resolve. Set against the backdrop of early twentieth-century Vienna, this novel presents a profound meditation on the limits of science and rationalism when measured against the vast, unquantifiable terrain of human emotion and loss. Translated with characteristic elegance by Willa and Edwin Muir — the same duo who rendered Kafka into English — the prose carries both intellectual precision and lyrical sensitivity.\n\nBroch, one of the towering figures of Austrian modernism and a peer of Musil and Joyce, argues through Hieck's journey that the coldest of analytical minds cannot remain insulated from the chaos of lived experience. The Unknown Quantity stands as a compelling companion to his monumental The Sleepwalkers, reinforcing Broch's central preoccupation with the disintegration of values in modern civilization. Rich with philosophical tension and psychological depth, this slim yet formidable novel leaves the reader questioning what truly lies beyond the reach of human knowledge — and whether that unknowable remainder is what makes us most human.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49203352174811,"sku":"2026200013412-SECONDHAND","price":12.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/0dc2044b-b5d4-4972-a2ff-b8cb87e5279c.png?v=1788147931","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026200013412-secondhand-the-unknown-quantity","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}