Emil J. Gumbel : : Weimar German pacifist and professor / / Arthur D. Brenner.

• Superior document: Studies in Central European Histories ; 22
• VerfasserIn: Brenner, Arthur David,
• Place / Publishing House: Boston, Massachusetts : : Humanities Press,, [2001]; ©2001
• Year of Publication: 2001
• Language: English
• Series: Studies in Central European Histories ; 22.
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (252 pages)

Emil J. Gumbel (1891-1966) began his career simply as a professor of mathematical statistics in Heidelberg, but he is most remembered as a political activist militantly advocating for pacifism during the complicated and volatile times of the Weimar Republic in Germany. As a Jew with left-wing socialist and democratic sensibilities, he was exiled to France and later America. Ironically, the same writings on political terror and politicized justice in Nazi Germany that caused his ostracization saved his life. A courageous man, Gumbel spoke out passionately against the Nazis and came to symbolize a 'one-man party' at the center of controversy in German academia. His intellectual and moral vigor never waned, and despite his significant scientific contributions, it is his legacy of political ideology that endures for later generations to learn from. This biography chronicles the public life of a man not entirely part of the political or the academic world, but who has earned his place in history nonetheless.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements -- Preface -- List of Abbreviations -- Introduction: A One-Man Party -- 1. Family, Childhood, and Education -- 2. From Internationalist to Militant Pacifist, 1914 to 1924 -- 3. Socialist and Democrat -- 4. Chronicling Political Violence and Politicized Justice -- 5. The Gumbel Affair in Heidelberg, Part I: 1924 to 1929 -- 6. The Gumbel Affair in Heidelberg, Part II: 1930 to 1932 -- 7. Anti-Fascist -- 8. Science and Scholarship -- Epilogue -- Appendices -- A. Gumbel on Political Murder: Sample Case Accounts -- B. University Governance and University of Heidelberg, Rectors and Deans -- C. Gumbel's "Minimal Program for the German Popular Front" -- Bibliography -- Index.