GERMAN-TEXAN-L Archives

From: "Robert G. Schulz, Jr." <>
Subject: [G-T] Thanks, Gisella!
Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2002 18:40:20 -0600

Gisella,

I certainly appreciate the additional detail and have seen your
clarifications in the histories I have read. Even though my piece was
"long," it was still a fairly "boiled down" summary and, in summarizing,
I lost some of that detail for the sake of "generalization."

A couple of points I would make: Yes, there was not a unified Germany
until 1871, but for most of the 19th Century up to that time there WAS a
"German Confederation" that comprised both Prussia and Austria and all
of the various kingdoms and provinces within both Prussia and Austria --
and, yes, northern Italy and many other areas of Czechoslovakia,
Belgium, on and on. I think most historians will refer to that
confederation as "Germany" for the sake of simplicity and brevity. Also,
yes, there was a boom in the German economy that followed Bismarck's
rise to power. I think my point was that, under the repressive laws
that ALSO attended Bismarck's rise and the Kaiser's takeover,
"philosophy, poetry, romanticism, and musical expression stagnated..."
Were not the late 1800s in Germany characterized by nihilism -- as best
personified in the philosophy of Nietzsche, and the music of Wagner? I
have read that one of the leading German legal philosophers of those
times, Rudolph von Ihering, defined the Bismarckian concept as "The
ultimate purpose of law is the preservation of the conditions under
which the state is able to live and grow." In practice, did not German
law again became an evolving set of rules designed to maintain the
status quo but most of all, the State? I suppose that was the point I
was making...

I also understand that the German "wanderer" does NOT mean "wanderer,"
it more closely means "traveler," but even that is too literal an
interpretation, I think. For example, "Einwanderer" (for simplicity,
"in-traveler") means immigrant, and "Auswanderer" (again for
simplicity, "out-traveler") means emigrant. Or, at least, I hope that is
correct!

But I thank you for your insight and clarification!

Bob Schulz

This thread:

• [G-T] Thanks, Gisella! by "Robert G. Schulz, Jr." <>