Social Mendelism: Genetics And The Politics Of Race In Germany, 1900–1948

283 Pages·2020·3.852 MB·English

by  Amir Teicher

Social Mendelism
Who was the scientific progenitor of eugenic thought? Amir Teicher
challengesthepreoccupationwithDarwin’seugeniclegacybyuncover-
ing the extent to which Gregor Mendel’s theory of heredity became
crucialintheformation–andradicalization–ofeugenicideas.Through
a compelling analysis of the entrenchment of genetic thinking in the
social and political policies in Germany between 1900 and 1948,
Teicher exposes how Mendelian heredity became saturated with cul-
turalmeaning,fedracialanxieties,reshapedtheidealofthepurification
oftheGermannationalbodyandultimatelydefinedeugenicprograms.
Drawing on scientific manuscripts and memoirs, bureaucratic corres-
pondence, court records, school notebooks and Hitler’s table talk as
well as popular plays and films, Social Mendelism presents a new para-
digmforunderstandinglinksbetweengeneticsandracism,andbetween
biologicalandsocialthought.
Amir Teicher is Assistant Professor in the Department of History,
TelAvivUniversity.

Social Mendelism
Genetics and the Politics of Race in Germany,
1900–1948
Amir Teicher
TelAvivUniversity
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For my grandparents
The hereditary mass of an individual is a mosaic from numerous hereditary
units,eachhavinga50%chancetobecombined[duringsexualreproduction]
with the hereditary units of the other partner. Each one of these genes
(hereditary units) maintains its integrity in the course of generations. If one
inter-crossestwodifferentraces,noneoftheseindividualhereditaryunitscan
everfullydisappear,buteachhereditarytraitwillappearamongtheoffspring
followingratiosthatcanbecomputedaccordingtoMendel’shereditarylaws.
So, for example, the probability that a certain hereditary disposition from a
particulargrandparentwouldappearbyagrandchildisonefourth.
Certain hereditary factors, when they come together with certain others,
penetrate through, that is, they leave their mark on the hybrid (dominant).
Thehereditaryfactorthatistherebyrepressed(recessive)ishowevernotlost,
butwillbecomenoticeableagaininfurthercrossings,ifthejoiningofhereditary
factors would result in a combination that contains only the recessive
dispositions.
WithrespecttotheapplicationofthefirstMendelianlaw,eachhereditary
unitneedstobeconsideredonitsown(itmendelsindependently).
–Theopeningsentencesofamemorandumtitled“Whatdemandsmustthe
hereditarybiologistraiseregardingthesolutionoftheJewishquestion?”prepared
bytheGermanInteriorMinistryexpertonnationalhealth,ArthurGütt,fora
discussionregardingthelegaldefinitionofJewsandJewishMischlinge,tendays
aftertheproclamationoftheNurembergLaws,1935)
“Iwantedtoout-mendelmyself(Ichwolltemichherausmendeln)!”
–NuclearphysicistFritzHoutermans,explainingtohiswifewhyhedecidedto
identifyhimselfasJewish,despitehavingonlyoneJewishgrandparent,1935
Contents
Listof Figures page ix
Acknowledgments xi
Listof Abbreviations xiii
Introduction 1
MendelismandtheStudyofHumanHeredity 5
Eugenics,Pseudo-scienceandNazism 11
GlossaryofTerms,asTheyWereUsedandUnderstoodby
theHistoricalActors 19
1 Mendel’s Laws and Their Application to Humans,
1865–1913 22
DefiningMendel’sLaws 28
FirstStepsinMendelizingRacial-Anthropology:Fischer’sRehobothStudy 35
TheMendelizationofMentalDisorders:Rüdin’s“RoutesandAims” 41
SearchingfortheUltimatePedigreeFormat:Genealogyand
MendelianThinking 47
2 Mendelism Maturing: From Experimental to Interpretative
Framework, 1913–1933 54
GenealogyRejectsMendelism 56
PsychiatryEmbracesMendelism 63
PhysicalAnthropologyRedefinesItself 73
3 Mendelism,Purity and National Renewal 89
RacialPurityandHybridization 90
TheDangerousRecessiveFactors 102
MendelizingJews 109
PeasantsandtheMendelianRebirthoftheNation 116
4 Annihilating Defective Genes: Mendelian Consciousness
and the Sterilization Campaign 125
MendelizingtheSterilizationLaw 130
TeachingMendel,ExplainingEugenics:AViewfromtheClassroom 143
MendelianReasoningandtheImplementationoftheSterilizationPolicy 155
vii
viii Contents
5 Mendelizing Racial Antisemitism 165
TheMendelianRoutetotheNurembergLaws 168
TeachingMendelianRacism 177
DiagnosingRaceandMendeling-OutJewishGenes 190
Epilogue: Social Mendelism beyond the Nazis 205
PostwarMendelianRacial-Hygiene 205
Meanwhile,beyondtheGermanFrontier 214
DepoliticizingMendel 224
Bibliography 232
Index 264
Figures
1.1 Eugen Fischer’s table from his “Rehoboth Bastards” study,
summarizing various anthropological featuresand their
“probable/very probable/certain” Mendelian character,
1913. page 40
1.2 Apedigreeof the mentally ill, analyzedin aMendelian
fashion, 1912. 46
1.3 ArthurCrzellitzer’s1909 kinship chart (Sippschaftstafel)
template, and an example for its usageto analyze familial
shortsightedness. 50
2.1 Kinship chart intended to assist doctorsperforming marriage
counseling, 1927. 61
2.2 Reproduction ofMax Hauschild’s scheme of
mendelized skulls and their crossing. 77
3.1 Max Moszkowski’s model for crossing NorthernEuropeans
with Negroes, 1916. 96
3.2 Max Moszkowski’s model for crossing Southern Europeans
with Negroes, 1916. 96
4.1 Aslide explainingthe recessive Mendelian inheritance of
myoclonus epilepsy, to beprojectedas part of the 1933 play
Erbstrom (hereditary stream). 127
4.2 Four scenes from a1934 educational-scientificfilmon the
terrifying resultsof allowing hares carrying recessive
deleterious genes to reproduce. 128
4.3 Mendelian heredity explained as abackground/justification
for sterilizing the blind(reproduction). 144
4.4 Three photos ofawoodenboard(60×45cm2) with
cardboard cutouts preparedespecially for teaching Mendelian
mechanisms in German high school by RudolfWagner,
acreative teacher-trainee (1935). 149
4.5 Nazi eugenic propaganda poster, demonstratingwhat
wouldhappenif the hereditarily inferiorpropagate at
double the rate ofthose consideredvaluable, 1935. 150
ix