Hans Freyer facts for kids
Hans Freyer (born July 31, 1887 – died January 18, 1969) was a German sociologist and philosopher. He was part of a group known as the conservative revolutionaries.
Contents
Life and Career
Hans Freyer started his university studies in 1907 at the University of Greifswald. He studied subjects like theology, economics, history, and philosophy. His first goal was to become a Lutheran religious leader.
A year later, he moved to Leipzig and continued his studies. He earned his doctorate degree in 1911. His early writings about the "philosophy of life" were important for the German youth movement of that time. In 1922, he became a professor at the university in Kiel.
In 1925, Freyer moved to the University of Leipzig. There, he started the university's sociology department. He led this department until 1948. At Leipzig, he developed a special way of studying sociology called the Leipzig School. This approach focused a lot on history.
Freyer and the Nazi Era
Hans Freyer showed support for the Nazi movement. In 1933, he signed a document called the Vow of allegiance of the Professors of the German Universities and High-Schools to Adolf Hitler and the National Socialistic State. This document was a promise of loyalty to Adolf Hitler.
He also took over from Ferdinand Tönnies as the head of the German Society for Sociology. Tönnies was openly against Hitler. However, Freyer stopped all activities of the society from 1934 onwards. This prevented it from becoming a tool for the Nazis. From 1938 to 1944, Freyer was in charge of the German Institute for Culture in Budapest. During this time, he helped create historical writings that were based on racist and anti-Jewish ideas.
Freyer was a Protestant and was married to Käthe Lübeck. They had four children together.
After World War II
After the Second World War, Freyer's position in Leipzig became difficult. Leipzig was then in the Soviet occupation zone. In 1948, he took a job at the Brockhaus publishing company in Wiesbaden.
He taught again for a few years, from 1953 to 1955, at the University of Münster. He also helped set up a sociology institute in Ankara in 1954. He was not able to become a full professor at a German university again. However, he taught as a retired professor from 1953 to 1963 in Münster.
In the 1950s, Freyer's book The Theory of the Present Era became very important. In this book, he shared ideas about how traditional conservative thinking could fit into the modern industrial age.
Key Ideas and Writings
Freyer's ideas were shaped by other famous thinkers. These included Hegel, Wilhelm Dilthey, Friedrich Nietzsche, and Oswald Spengler.
Early Works: Life and Culture
In 1918, Freyer published Antaeus, which was about how to live a conscious life. In 1923, he wrote Prometheus, which explored ideas about culture. He slowly became part of the "young conservatives" group.
He believed in a society with a clear structure and leaders. He thought that individual freedom should sometimes be less important than the needs of the group. He also wrote about how technology was changing society. He called this the "Theory of Secondary Systems."
The State and Society
In his 1926 book, Der Staat (The State), Freyer described three repeating stages in history: belief, style, and the state. He saw the "state" stage as the best one. In this ideal state, a strong leader would unite everyone. This idea was similar to the goals of the Conservative Revolution and National Socialism.
In 1929, Freyer wrote Soziologie als Wirklichkeitswissenschaft (Sociology as a "Science of Reality"). He said that sociology came from the philosophy of history. He believed sociology was needed to understand why society changes. He thought it could help guide future changes.
In 1931, Freyer wrote an article called Die Revolution von Rechts (The Revolution from the Right). He argued that people should only be free if they shared a common goal. He felt that individual freedom should be limited for the good of the community.
Works During National Socialism
During the Nazi period, Freyer wrote more articles. Some of these were very close to Nazi ideas. They were not published again after the war. After World War II, many scholars criticized Freyer. They saw him as someone who helped prepare the way for National Socialism.
Freyer was seen as a strong supporter of Nazi ideas. This is clear in his 1935 book, Pallas Athene. Ethics of the political people. In this book, he wrote that a person's conscience should be political. This meant it should not focus on individual feelings or universal rules. Instead, it should be ready to use force. He believed that political goodness was tied to the nation. He also thought that the nation's purpose was to destroy its enemies. He wrote that a leader who followed this plan truly showed the will of the people. This will, he said, was shaped by race, rules, education, and force.
After World War II, some of Freyer's books were put on a list of forbidden literature in the Soviet zone. These included Revolution from the Right (1931) and Pallas Athene (1935).
Post-War Ideas: Industrial Society
After the war, Freyer's writings still showed very conservative ideas. He had some influence on thinking in West Germany.
In 1955, Freyer wrote Theory of the Present Age. In this book, he described societies before industrialization as "primary systems." He called the industrial age a "secondary system" because humans created it on purpose. He focused on how quickly industrial society grew in the 20th century. This growth involved more technology, big companies replacing small ones, and many people living in cities. He believed that science became very important in this new age.
He thought the Industrial Revolution around 1800 was a huge change for humans. He compared it to when humans first settled down and stopped moving around.
Freyer believed that old ways of describing industrial society no longer worked. He thought new ideas were needed. He disagreed with the idea that progress would automatically create a better human being. He also thought that feeling disconnected was normal in industrial society. He believed that technology was a key part of the industrial age. He aimed to combine conservative ideas with a modern understanding of industrial society. These views were very important during the time of Chancellor Adenauer in Germany.
List of works
- Antäus. Grundlegung einer Ethik des bewußten Lebens, 1918
- Die Bewertung der Wirtschaft im philosophischen Denken des 19. Jahrhunderts, 1921
- Prometheus. Ideen zur Philosophie der Kultur, 1923
- Theorie des objektiven Geistes. Eine Einleitung in die Kulturphilosophie", 1923
- Der Staat, 1925
- Soziologie als Wirklichkeitswissenschaft. Logische Grundlegung des Systems der Soziologie, 1930
- Einleitung in die Soziologie, 1931
- Die Revolution von rechts, 1931
- Herrschaft und Planung. Zwei Grundbegriffe der politischen Ethik, 1933
- Das Politische Semester, 1933
- Pallas Athene. Ethik des politischen Volkes, 1935
- Über Fichtes Machiavelli-Aufsatz, 1936
- Die politische Insel. Eine Geschichte der Utopien von Platon bis zur Gegenwart, 1936
- Vom geschichtlichen Selbstbewußtsein des 20. Jahrhunderts, 1937
- Gesellschaft und Geschichte, 1937
- Machiavelli, 1938
- Weltgeschichte Europas, 2 Bände, 1948
- Theorie des gegenwärtigen Zeitalters, 1955
- Schwelle der Zeiten. Beiträge zur Soziologie der Kultur, 1965
- Entwicklungstendenzen und Probleme der modernen Industriegesellschaft, in: Industriegesellschaft in Ost und West, Mainz
- Herrschaft, Planung und Technik. Aufsätze zur Soziologie, published and introduced by Elfriede Üner, 1987
See also
- Arnold Gehlen
- Gotthard Günther
- Ernest Manheim
- Heinz Maus
- Helmut Schelsky
