Franz Oppenheimer (born 30 March 1864 in Berlin; died 30
September 1943 in Los Angeles) was a German sociologist and
political economist, who also in the area of the fundamental sociology of the
state.
Personal life
After his study of medicine in Freiburg and Berlin, Oppenheimer was practiced as a physician in Berlin from 1886 to
1895. From 1890 onwards, he began to concern himself
with sociopolitical questions and social economics. After his activity as a physician, he was editor-in-chief of the magazine
Welt am Morgen, where he became acquainted with Friedrich
Naumann, who was, at the time, working door-to-door for different daily papers.
In 1909, Oppenheimer earned a Ph.D. in Kiel with a
thesis about economist David Ricardo. From 1909 to 1917, Oppenheimer was Privatdozent in Berlin, then for two
years Titularprofessor. In 1919, he accepted a call to serve as Chair for Sociology and Theoretical Political Economy at Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt/Main. This was the first chair in
dedicated to sociology in Germany, and the only such chair prior to 1929.
From 1934 to 1935, Oppenheimer taught in Palestine. In 1936 he was appointed an honourary
member of the American Sociological
Association. From 1938 onwards, he taught at the University of Kobe in Japan. After he emigrated to the United
States (1942), he became a founding member of the American Journal of Economics and Sociology.
Ideas
Ludwig Erhard studied economics with Franz Oppenheimer and was
strongly influenced by Oppenheimer's ideas of "liberal socialist" economic policy that attempted to steer a middle path between socialism and liberalism. Albert Jay Nock, although a vocal critic of socialism, was deepy influenced
by Oppenheimer's analysis of the fundamental nature of the state.
Writings
Franz Oppenheimer created an extensive oeuvre, consisting of approximately 40 books and 400 essays, containing writings on
sociology, economics, and the political questions of his time.
External links
Works
Other
see also: Political sociology, Economic sociology, Political economy
|
