The lecture is part of the Science Studies Colloquium Series, and is open for everyone. The lecture lasts from 14.15-15.00. Shortly after we open up for questions, comments and discussion.
Abstract: This talk is about the treatment accorded by Germany’s most prestigious research organization, the Max Planck Society, after 1945 to scientists who had been dismissed from its predecessor, the Kaiser Wilhelm Society, during the years of National Socialism. Michael Schüring’s research revealed the Max Planck Society’s lack of willingness to accept moral responsibility for its conduct between 1933 and 1945. Only few members had spoken out against the persecution of their colleagues, while many others had directly profited from it. This turned out to be a major hurdle for reconstructing relations and mutual trust after the fall of the Nazi regime. Relying mainly on previously unpublished material, Schüring is able to analyze the uneasy and sometimes failed rapprochement between persecuted scientists and their former colleagues in Germany. The history of the scientific elite in Adenauer’s Germany is a history of denial, disturbing personal and ideological continuity, and an ongoing exclusion of the victims of National Socialism.