The Austrian Mind: An Intellectual and Social History, 1848–1938

497 Pages·1983·36.331 MB·English

by  William M. Johnston

The
Austrian
Mind
AN
INTELLECTUAL
AND
SOCIAL
HISTORY
1848.1938
t
Architecture of the 1880's
along Vienna's Ringstrasse, looking across
Parliament toward Town Hall
and the university.
Jhe
AN
INTELLECTUAL
Austrian
AND
SOCIAL HISTORY
Mnd
1848-1938
WILLIAM M. JOHNSTON
UNIVERSITY OF
CALIFORNIA PRESS
BERKELEY LOS ANGELES LONDON
University of California Press
Berkeley and Los Angeles
University of California Press, Ltd.
London, England
Copyright © 1972 by The Regents of the University of California
California Library Reprint Series Edition, 1976
First California Paperback Printing 1983
ISBN 0-520-04955-1
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 75-111418
Designed by Wolfgang Lederer
Printed in the United States of America
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 89
Magistris,
Amicis,
Discipulisque
Etwas Neues kann man nur finden,
wenn man das Alte kennt.
One can find something new
only if one knows the old
—Jean Gebser
URSPRUNG UND
GEGENWART

Preface
This volume will, I earnestly hope, stimulate—or as the case may be,
irritate—future researchers into reexamining the entire range of mod-
ern Austrian thought. To facilitate further study I have included bio-
graphical sketches together with bibliographies for nearly every major
figure discussed. In passing, mention is made of many less conspicuous
figures who deserve renewed attention. Throughout, my intention is
to open up this long-neglected field, not to foreclose it.
A word about usage is in order. In presenting quotations, I have
included in the footnotes—and sometimes in the text—the German
original for nearly every passage quoted. Translations are my own
except where otherwise noted. Perhaps to the dismay of those who do
not read German, I have not translated book titles. The context will,
I hope, indicate the subject of such books. I have cited place names
by their German equivalents except for standard anglicizations such as
Vienna, Prague, or Styria.
A book of this scope distills its author's entire experience. It
would be futile to enumerate conversations, lectures, readings, or
travels that inspired one passage or another. Yet, I owe a special debt
to those Austrian intellectuals who encouraged the enterprise at its
inception. During 1966-1967 Professor Werner Haas, now of Ohio
State University, stimulated my interest in Austria—with consequences
that he little imagined. During the summer of 1967 at Vienna, I was
privileged to talk with Professor Franz Theodor Csokor (d. 1969),
Professor Friedrich Heer, Professor Ernst Florian Winter, Dr. Viktor
Siichy, and Ernst Fischer. At Budapest I conducted memorable inter-
views with Professor Antal Mádl and Professor Georg Lukács (d. 1971).
The views of these scholars broadened and sharpened my own, while
inciting me to renewed effort.
During the fall of 1967 I conversed in New York with Professor
Ernst Waldinger (d. 1970), and later I corresponded most fruitfully
with Professor Ludwig von Bertalanffy, now at the State University of
New York at Buffalo. Repeatedly Professor Werner Stark of Fordham
University bolstered my enthusiasm with discerning suggestions. Pro-
fessor Robert A. Kann of Rutgers University offered incisive advice
once he had completed his duties as chairman of the Jury for the
Austrian History Prize. Finally, each of two unknown readers for the
University of California Press left a far-reaching imprint on the book.
viii PREFACE
All illustrations come from the Bildarchiv of the österreichische Na-
tionalbibliothek, Vienna.
While preparing the first drafts, I enjoyed invaluable support from
the University of Massachusetts Graduate School. A research grant,
authorized by Edward C. Moore, then dean of the Graduate School,
sustained me when all other sources of financial aid had failed.
Throughout, my wife has exemplified, as only she can, the wisdom of
George Eliot's statement, "Those who trust us educate us."
W. M. J.
Amherst, Massachusetts
Contents
Introduction 1
Objectives and Obstacles
of Austrian Intellectual History
PART ONE 1. From Baroque to Biedermeier 11
Habsburg From Origins of the Habsburg Empire
to Baroque Faith in Providence
Bureaucracy:
Inertia Josephinism as a Fount of
versus Both Liberalism and Conservatism
Reform
Biedermeier Culture as a Seedbed
Of Later Attitudes
The Intellectual Preeminence of Jews: Its Roots
in Tribal Tradition and Gentile Rejection
2. The Emperor and His Court 30
The Longevity of Fragility: The World
of Security and Its Cassandras
Emperor Franz Joseph: Biedermeier Monarch
in an Industrializing World
Aristocracy and Lesser Nobility: Privilege
as a Check on Innovation
3. An Empire of Bureaucrats 45
Uniformity Versus Venality in
an Antiquated Bureaucracy
X CONTENTS
The Mixed Blessing of a Peacetime Army
A State Church Calls Anticlericals
The Municipal Socialism of Karl Lueger
Schools and Universities: Immersion
in Tradition as Training for Genius
Twilight at Vienna: Intellectual Innovation
Amid Economic Ruin
4. Economists as Bureaucrats 76
Karl Pribram's Terminology for the Transition
from Feudalism to Capitalism
Carl Menger's Psychological Theory
of Economic Needs
Friedrich von Wieser as Advocate
of a Mixed Economy
Joseph Schumpeter: Disinherited Heir
of the Habsburg Empire
Affinities Between the Austrian School
of Economics and Josephinist Bureaucracy
5. Legal Theorists 88
Authority of the State Challenged and Abetted
by Theorists of Law
Eugen Ehrlich as Champion of Local Custom
Anton Menger: Utopian Critic of Private Law
Hans Gross: Pioneer of Scientific Crime Detection
Hans Kelsen's Pure Theory of Law: The Political
Impotence of Theoretical Rigor
6. Austro-Marxists 99
Viktor Adler: Organizer of Austrian Socialism
Tactical Blunders by a Theoretician: Otto Bauer
Karl Renner: The Austro-Marxist as Conciliator
Max Adler's Synthesis of Kant and Marx