Rudolf Burger

Rudolf Burger(8 December 1938 – 19 April 2021) was an Austrianphilosopher.

Life and career[edit]

Burger was born inViennain the year of the occupation and the annexation of Austria intoNazi Germany,calledAnschluss.His parents were activecommunists.He concluded his studies ofphysicsat theTechnical Universityin Vienna and thereafter served as an assistant at theInstitute of Applied Physics,where he concluded hisdoctoratein 1965.

After working at theLudwig Boltzmann Institute for Condensed Matter Physicsin Vienna, Burger switched to theBattelle InstituteinFrankfurt.There he was part of the team for research plannings. He also joined the Planning Commission of Germany'sFederal Ministry of Education and ResearchinBonn.

From 1973 to 1990 Burger headed the department forresearchinhumanitiesandsocial sciencesat the AustrianMinistry of Science.In 1979 Burger achieved hishabilitationinsociology of scientific knowledge,in 1987 he became a professor at theUniversity of Applied ArtsinVienna,where he was appointed to the chair forphilosophyin 1991. From 1995 to 1999 Burger served as rector of this university. In 2007 he retired.

Since the 1980s Burger initiated or participated in several intellectual and political discussions in Austria. His essays are published in the daily newspaperDie Presse,in the weeklyprofil,as well as in intellectual magazines likeFORVM,LeviathanorMerkur.

Burger died on 18 April 2021, aged 82.^[1]

Status[edit]

Burger is well appreciated for his elegant style as an essayist and his avid love forintellectual criticism.His cynicism stirred some controversies, starting in 1990, when he opened theGünther Anderssymposium of the city of Vienna by speaking ofmoralistic extortion,comparing Anders andHeidegger,equating their philosophies, and finally stating:

Though - as a biological species - the human is no value on itself, but rather - after the death of God - just a fact. It depends always only on thesingle beingand the structure of the relations with those we live with, we love, we hate. And this surrounding is limited, also in the shadow of the bomb.
— Rudolf Burger, Opening Speech at the Günther Anders Symposium^[2]

PhilosopherKonrad Paul LiessmanndefendedAndersand responded:[...] therefore the circumstances are dancing; but where is the rose?.^[3]In 1992 Burger both criticised Austria's foreign policy at theBalkansaswarmonger(in German: kriegsgeil) and at the same time requested to let the parties of the warexsanguinate.^[4]These comments caused a nationwide controversy. In 2000 Burger criticised theThursday Demonstrationsagainst theSchüssel/Haidercoalition as anantifascist carnival^[5]and again unchained a national debate. Finally, in 2001 he angered a lot of critical intellectuals with his request to forget and close the debates on guilt and remembrance.^[6]Historian Heribert Schiedel therefore named himthe black and blue court philosopher,^[7]black referring toÖVP,blue toFPÖ.

Published works (selection)[edit]

(ed., with Michael Benedikt):Die Krise der Phänomenologie und Pragmatik des Wissenschaftsfortschritts.Wien 1986
Vermessungen.Essays zur Destruktion der Geschichte. Sonderzahl, Wien 1989,ISBN 3-85449-017-8.
In der Zwischenzeit.Adnoten zu Politik und Philosophie. Springer, Wien und New York 1996,ISBN 3-211-82782-X.
Ptolemäische Vermutungen.Aufzeichnungen über die Bahn der Sitten. Zu Klampen, Lüneburg 2001,ISBN 3-934920-06-3.
Kleine Geschichte der Vergangenheit.Eine pyrrhonische Skizze der historischen Vernunft. Styria, Wien 2004,ISBN 3-222-13149-X.
Re-Theologisierung der Politik?Wertedebatten und Mahnreden. Zu Klampen, Springe 2005,ISBN 3-934920-56-X.
Im Namen der Geschichte.Vom Mißbrauch der historischen Vernunft. Zu Klampen, Springe 2007,ISBN 978-3-86674-015-0.
Jenseits der Linie.Ausgewählte philosophische Erzählungen. Sonderzahl-Verlag, Wien 2008,ISBN 978-3-85449-304-4.
Das Elend des Kulturalismus.Antihumanistische Betrachtungen. Zu Klampen, Springe 2011,ISBN 978-3-86674-147-8.

External links[edit]

Literature by and about Rudolf Burgerin theGerman National Librarycatalogue

References[edit]

^Philosoph Rudolf Burger gestorben(in German)
^Rudolf Burger:Die Philosophie des Aufschubs,in: FORVM, 444, V. XXXVII, December 15, 1990, 16-19
^Konrad Paul Liessmann:Der Aufschub der Philosophie,in: FORVM, 444, V. XXXVII, 15 December 1990, 19-22
^profil, 20 August 1992
^Rudolf Burger:Austromanie oder Der antifaschistische Karneval,in: Merkur 5/2000.
^Rudolf Burger:Die Irrtümer der Gedenkpolitik. Ein Plädoyer für das Vergessen,in: Europäische Rundschau, 2/2001, 3-13
^[1]Formen des Vergessens: Von der Leugnung über die Relativierung zur Desavouierung

[1] Philosoph Rudolf Burger gestorben(in German)

[2] Rudolf Burger:Die Philosophie des Aufschubs,in: FORVM, 444, V. XXXVII, December 15, 1990, 16-19

[3] Konrad Paul Liessmann:Der Aufschub der Philosophie,in: FORVM, 444, V. XXXVII, 15 December 1990, 19-22

[4] rofil, 20 August 1992

[5] Rudolf Burger:Austromanie oder Der antifaschistische Karneval,in: Merkur 5/2000.

[6] Rudolf Burger:Die Irrtümer der Gedenkpolitik. Ein Plädoyer für das Vergessen,in: Europäische Rundschau, 2/2001, 3-13

[7] [1]Formen des Vergessens: Von der Leugnung über die Relativierung zur Desavouierung

[1]

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