Einstein's German World

by Fritz Stern

Book Overview

The French political philosopher Raymond Aron once observed that the twentieth century "could have been Germany's century." In 1900, the country was Europe's preeminent power, its material strength and strident militaristic ethos apparently balanced by a vital culture and extraordinary scientific achievement. It was poised to achieve greatness. In Einstein's German World, the eminent historian Fritz Stern explores the ambiguous promise of Germany...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 069105939X
• ISBN13: 9780691059396
• Release Date: August 1999
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Length: 271 Pages
• Weight: 1.51 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Fleeting visit in a strange house

Brief is this existence, as a fleeting visit in a strange house. The path to be pursued is poorly lit by a flickering consciousness, the center of which is the limiting and separating self. The great Mr.Einstein said this at the funeral of a colleague in Princeton in 1954. To overcome the limiting and separating self towards a We, he had stayed in Berlin longer than his inclinations would normally have made him. He cherished the scientific companionship with people like Planck, Laue, Born, Haber, while he despised German nationalism and militarism. He also had little understanding for the servility of many German Jews towards the German authorities. Where did this 'servility' come from? Stern's thesis: the belief in the propriety of state authority was so deeply ingrained in people like Haber that they just could not imagine the state as an agent of crime. A long biographical essay on the parallel and divergent careers of Einstein and Haber is the strong center piece of this otherwise a little uneven essay collection. One would have wished a monography on the subject, rather than this loose assembly of good stuff mixed with too much chaff. What is the subject? Stern wants to illuminate the 'scientific-political-milieu' in Germany during Einstein's time, that is from the Kaiserzeit through Weimar to Nazi rule. Was the NS terror the culmination of Germanity or was it an aberration? Both extreme interpretations are inadmissable ideological simplifications. Haber was a captain of science and science management. He contributed major inventions (mainly the fixation of nitrogen, which allowed the industrial production of ammonia for fertilizer and explosives, which made BASF big and which enabled Germany's WW1 effort). He also contributed the development of the gas weapon, for which achievement he is loathed by many. He furthered the building of strong scientific institutions with state and industrial as well as bank backing. He remained a close friend of Einstein's despite their strong political disagreements. He was discarded by the NS regime and died quickly in exile, deeply disappointed. Other essays are about Rathenau, captain of industry from a Jewish family, who accepted political positions in Weimar and was assassinated by furious nationalists who pinned the blame for the war defeat on him, as a representative of the traitor class. One on Paul Ehrlich, Nobel winning immunologist (sponsored by my former employer Hoechst, who later decided to disintegrate in order to enrich investment bankers), who found the cure for syphilis (for which he was condemned by the good Christians.) One on Max Planck, non-Jewish doyen of German science, with a curiously ambiguous behaviour during the dark ages, but essentially a decent man. Conclusion: worth while, but not entirely satisfactory due to lack of focus and too many redundancies.

In the shadows of terror!

Fritz Stern has filled an important void around those times in which the promising figure of Albert Einstein has to face against that opprobrious regime; through a progressive cracking of the noble values which reigned in Germany, as well as all that state of things that surrounded, permeated and allowed the unthinkable happened. A revealing, poignant and incisive portrait.

A sad story deserving of more attention

The book's cover shows a photo of a happy Albert Einstein on board the German ship Deutschland, as he heads home for Germany from a trip abroad. On the back cover it is entitled "Heimreise nach Deutschland," meaning the journey home to Germany. The last essay of the book concludes with Professor Stern--who is German by birth--explaining how it feels to be "heimatlos," meaning to be without a home. The word "Heimat," carries a special meaning of warmth and comfort associated with one's homeland. It requires a good insight into German culture to understand the emotions it evokes for Germans who find themselves away from home. Between "Heimreise" and "heimatlos," lies the book's theme that recounts the poignant experiences of several world renown German scientists, who were Jews. This is not a book about scientists and their accomplishments, but about accomplished Germans who were ostracized by their country for being Jews.Contrary to some recent writings, these men and their families were well integrated and accepted by their colleagues and German society. They were Germans who could trace their ancestry in Germany for many generations. They were patriots just as any other German. Like any other German they contributed to the war effort during WW1. They distinguished themselves as soldiers. They prospered and enjoyed their German culture and lifestyle. They commanded respect and were held in esteem for their accomplishments. Then came the Nazis.The common theme of the biographical sketches of each of the personalities is a reflection on the sense of loss, the profound disillusionment, which these men felt as they came to accept the stark reality that their country of birth, their beloved fatherland, was turning against them. It is hard to imagine the deep sense of betrayal these men, and others like them, must have felt when the Nazis deprived them of their citizenship and drove them out of their "Heimat." The book tells a sad story, not of death and destruction, not of material dispossession, but of the loss of civil rights, disillusionment, and of the bitter sense of rejection felt by some of Germany's best and finest. Other than that, Fritz Stern's style makes the book a real joy to read.

Cultural history at its best

The title of the review applies more clearly to the first part of the book: chapters 1-4 and, especially, chapter 3--the centerpiece and gem of the book--where the fascinating discussion of Einstein is central. The essays in the second part of the book are well done but less interesting. The book's title says a great deal about what one finds in the first four chapters, and one learns a lot about Germany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, whether the focus is on science, culture, religion, the politics and economics of science, or the intricate ties that bound government, business, the universities, and both the applied and theoretical scientists. All of these strands are discussed in a writing style that can only be described as masterful. I remember a class wth Fritz Stern many years ago where, among many things, two virtues in particular stood out: clarity and honesty. Some things do not change.