Hans Jonas facts for kids

Hans Jonas (born May 10, 1903 – died February 5, 1993) was an important German-born American Jewish philosopher. From 1955 to 1976, he was a professor of philosophy at the New School for Social Research in New York City. Jonas is well-known for his ideas on how humans should act responsibly towards the planet and future generations, especially when using new technologies.

Life Story of Hans Jonas

Birth house of Hans Jonas in Mönchengladbach

In front of Jonas's birth house, two Stolpersteine (stumbling stones) were placed in 2008. The one on the left remembers his mother, Rosa Jonas, who was killed in Auschwitz in 1942.

Hans Jonas was born in Mönchengladbach, Germany, on May 10, 1903. He studied philosophy and theology at several universities, including University of Freiburg and University of Heidelberg. In 1928, he earned his PhD from the University of Marburg. His main topic was Gnosticism, which was an ancient religious movement.

During his studies, he met Hannah Arendt, who also became a famous philosopher. They remained close friends throughout their lives. One of his teachers was Martin Heidegger. However, when Heidegger joined the Nazi Party in 1933, it was a very difficult time for Jonas. Jonas was Jewish and a strong supporter of Zionism (a movement for a Jewish homeland). In 1964, Jonas spoke out against Heidegger because of his connection with the Nazis.

In 1933, Jonas left Germany and moved to England. The next year, in 1934, he moved to Palestine. There, he met Lore Weiner, and they later got married in 1943. In 1940, he went back to Europe to join the British Army. He joined a special group called the Jewish Brigade, which was made up of German Jews who wanted to fight against Adolf Hitler. He fought in Italy and eventually moved into Germany during the final part of the war. This fulfilled his promise that he would only return to Germany as a soldier in a winning army.

Right after the war, he went back to Mönchengladbach to find his mother. Sadly, he learned that she had been killed in the gas chambers at the Auschwitz concentration camp. After this terrible news, he decided he could never live in Germany again. He returned to Palestine and fought in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.

Jonas taught for a short time at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Then, in 1950, he moved to Canada and taught at Carleton University. In 1955, he moved to New York City, where he lived for the rest of his life. He became a professor of philosophy at the New School for Social Research and taught there until 1976. Hans Jonas passed away at his home in New Rochelle, New York, on February 5, 1993, at the age of 89.

Hans Jonas's Ideas and Writings

Hans Jonas's writings had a big impact on many areas of thought. His early research on Gnosticism led to his book The Gnostic Religion, published in 1958. For many years, this book was the main source in English for understanding Gnosticism.

One of his most important books is The Imperative of Responsibility, first published in German in 1979 and then in English in 1984. This book focuses on the ethical problems that new technology creates. Jonas strongly believed that for humans to survive, we must take care of our planet and its future. He created a new moral rule: "Act so that the effects of your action are compatible with the permanence of genuine human life." This means we should always think about how our actions today will affect people and the Earth far into the future.

The Imperative of Responsibility is often given credit for helping to start the environmental movement in Germany. Another important work, The Phenomenon of Life (1966), helped shape a major way of thinking about bioethics in America. Bioethics is the study of ethical issues that come from advances in biology and medicine. In this book, Jonas tried to connect the philosophy of matter with the philosophy of mind. He argued that human nature is both physical and moral at the same time.

Jonas was one of the first philosophers to seriously think about ethical questions in biological science. His career is often seen in three main parts, based on his major works:

• His studies on Gnosticism.
• His studies on philosophical biology (how philosophy relates to life and living things).
• His ethical studies, especially about technology and responsibility.

Main Books by Hans Jonas

• The Gnostic Religion: The Message of the Alien God & the Beginnings of Christianity (1958)
• The Phenomenon of Life: Toward a Philosophical Biology (1966)
• The Imperative of Responsibility: In Search of Ethics for the Technological Age (1984)
• Philosophical Essays: From Ancient Creed to Technological Man (1974)
• Mortality and Morality: A Search for Good After Auschwitz (1996)

See also

• Natural environment
• Environmental movement
• Ethics of technology
• Noocracy
• Jewish philosophy