THE FAILURE OF HOPE: THE ZEITGEIST OF WEIMAR GERMANY IN

THE GRAF ZEPPELIN, THE PHENOMENOLOGY OF HUSSERL, AND BERLINER

JAZZ

AN ASSIGNMENT SUBMITTED TO

DR. JAMES HERSH, Ph. D.

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT

OF THE COURSE REQUIREMENTS

OF

HUMANITIES 620: SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION THROUGH ART

BY

CLARK H. SUMMERS

INDEPENDENT REASEARCH FELLOWS COHORT

SALVE REGINA UNIVERSITY

NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND

7 MAY 2014

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT iii

INTRODUCTION 1

HEGEL – PHILOSOPHICAL BASIS OF ZEITGEIST 2

TECHNOLOGY – THE GRAF ZEPPELIN (LZ-127) 5

THOUGHT – THE PHENOMENOLOGY OF HUSSERL 8

ART – JAZZ AND “NUR IN SEBASTOPOL” 11

ANALYSIS 15

CONCLUSION 20

REFERENCES 23

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ABSTRACT

The appreciation of a zeitgeist can really only happen in the moment of its death, and in the

reflection that follows its passing. As Hegel said in the Preface of Philosophy of Right, “The owl

of Minerva, takes its flight only when the shades of night are gathering.” The era between the

First and Second World Wars is commonly referred to as the Weimar Republic; known for the

political and economic unrest which led to the rise of Hitler and the National Socialist party.

Within this turmoil there was also a theme of optimism, one that reflected the growth of

modernism, and a vision of hope for the future. This optimism and hope can be seen in the three

cultural artifacts considered in this paper: the technical pinnacle of air flight achieved by the

Graf Zeppelin, the philosophy of Edmund Husserl, and the Berliner Jazz of the Weintraub

Syncopaters. In their own way they each exemplify the optimism woven within the fabric of the

Weimar era, and yet each also failed to sustain that optimism, becoming only markers of the

gathering storm of Nazi totalitarianism. Each would reach their pinnacle in 1929, illustrating the

hope and optimism of the Weimar era. None of this was apparent at that moment. It was only

with the rise of the Nazi regime in 1932 and the years after that one can see that the zeitgeist of

Weimar Germany was that hope in modernism would fail.

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INTRODUCTION

Following its 1918 defeat in the Great War, and with the establishment of a national

parliamentary republic in the city of Weimar in 1919, Germany faced an uncertain future. Over

the course of the next decade, the German people struggled to define themselves in the emerging

modern world and to move beyond the scars and wounds of the lost war. The Weimar Republic

was marked by internal conflict and economic dysfunction. It also offered the opportunity for

progress, optimism and a reach for the modern. This paper will consider three cultural artifacts

which illustrate the peak, the “high water mark” of Weimar Germany: the Graf Zeppelin airship,

the Phenomenology of Edmund Husserl, and the jazz tune “Nur in Sebastopol”, (played by the

Weintraub Syncopaters). and argue that they capture the zeitgeist – the “spirit of the time” –

before the rise of the National Socialists.

For our purposes, we will use the definition of “modernism” found in Oxford Dictionary

of English, 2d Ed. (Kindle): “A style or movement in the arts that aims to depart significantly

from classical and traditional forms; a movement towards modifying traditional beliefs in

accordance with modern ideas.” In the 19th and 20th centuries, modernity was associated

predominantly with the ideas of Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, and that the history of

humanity was on an inevitable path of progress and social improvement. (Blackburn 1994, 294-

5) Given Hegel’s close association with the concepts of the modern, his work will provide the

conceptual foundation for our consideration of zeitgeist and the characteristics of artifacts which

illustrate it within any given society, culture or nation. Building upon this foundation, we will

consider in closer detail each of the three artifacts of the Weimar era:

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• The Graf Zeppelin was a technological marvel, validating the concept and benefits of

intercontinental air travel decades ahead of heavier-than-air aircraft, but ultimately being

considered a technological dead-end.

• Husserl’s philosophy of Phenomenology would lay the groundwork for all philosophical

work for the balance of the 20thcentury, but rather than his implied optimism, his peers

and those who followed him would develop themes that resulted in post-modern

existentialism (as typified by Oswald Spengler and Martin Heidegger).

• Jazz reflects the individual interpretation and expression of the performers, and is the

musical manifestation of modernism. But the jazz music community was influenced

heavily by both expatriate African-Americans and native Jewish musicians; it would

come under direct attack by the National Socialists as they rose to power, eventually

being banned by the government.

The paper addresses the interconnections between the zeitgeist elements, and considers how their

inherent optimism, and thus the hope of the Weimar Republic, ultimately succumbed to the

rising power – the “counter-zeitgeist” – of the Nazis.

HEGEL – PHILOSOPHICAL BASIS OF ZEITGEIST

Hegel provides a solid foundation for a common understanding of the concept of

zeitgeist. Furthermore, his influence upon later philosophy is undeniable, as we will see when we

consider Husserl and other early 20th century philosophers in greater detail below.

Hegel argues that the course of history demonstrates an unmistakable rational pattern

from disorder and random chance toward order and the conscious selection of good. He states

that, “One ought to have the firm and invincible faith that there is Reason in history and to

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believe that the world of intelligence and of self-conscious willing is not abandoned to mere

chance, but must manifest itself in the light of rational Idea. (Hegel 1997, 12) In this way, Hegel

is differentiating between the natural world, where entropy insures that disorder invariably

proceeds from order, and the world of human society and civilization, which has become more

complex and ordered over time. Hegel is working from the orientation that history – the course

of human experience – is teleological, meaning that it follows a purposeful path toward a specific

end or result. He develops the idea that Reason, the undeniable and unrestricted expression of

consciousness or Thought, is what guides the course of history. (Hegel 1997, 15) Reason is the

force driving history towards a final culmination or resolution is both rational and transcendent.

It is unconstrained by physical limits. Hegel introduces the mechanism that drives history

forward, (widely referred to as the ‘Hegelian Dialectic”) in his introduction of the “Idea of

Freedom” (Hegel 1997, 22-23) Fundamentally, the Hegelian Dialectic consists of thesis, the

relative recognized and understood arc of history at any given point; antithesis, the contravening

or oppositional force that appears to challenge the recognized arc, and: synthesis, the resulting

modified or new course of the arc of history that emerges from the conflict between thesis and

antithesis. The process repeats itself as synthesis matures into thesis and is challenged by an

emerging antithesis, and Reason advances in a new synthesis.

Hegel argues that it is this advance of the Spirit that is of prime interest, “its progression

and ascent to an ever higher concept of itself.” (Hegel 1997, 38-9) In this advance, the

cumulative sum of actions, interfaces and mutual intercourse, the character of a given society,

culture or civilization can be understood, revealing its “fundamental spirit” – the “what it is”

(Houlgate 2005, 10) Both the community as a whole and the individuals who make-up that

whole will reflect the level of progress: the advance of the spirit that has been reached at any 3

given point. (Hegel 1997, 37) The actions one takes, the thoughts, opinions and attitudes they

hold, are reflections of the universal within them. (Hegel 1997, 39) And because the individual

cannot be divorced from the community, the character (of a people or civilization) is determined

by the “basic shared assumptions (conscious and unconscious) manifest in (their) practices,

creative activities, labor and beliefs.” (Houlgate 2005, 11) These two ideas capture the concept

that individuals think and act within the context of their location in time and place – they are

simultaneously both a participant in, and a reflection of “zeitgeist,” the ”spirit of the age”

It is Hegel’s premise that zeitgeist is reflected and expressed in in a culture’s artifacts, a

manifestation that is unique to the character of their society and level of civilization. (Houlgate

2005, 10) The “practices, creative activities, labor and beliefs” are illustrated by the examples of

art, technology and thought a society produces. Zeitgeist is not static – it moves because history

is constantly moving forward towards an ultimate resolution. Framed by this teleological

concept, zeitgeist is an expression of a given point along the arc of history, and must be

understood as an element of the struggle between a thesis, antithesis or the resulting synthesis.

The artifacts of a zeitgeist will be characteristic of the struggle, revealing some aspect of its

nature and place along the arc of history; they are the signposts marking the progress toward

final resolution.

Armed with this foundation, we will examine the Graf Zeppelin, (technology), the

philosophy of Edmund Husserl, (thought), and the song “Nur in Sebastopol” as artifacts

illustrating the zeitgeist of Weimar Germany in 1929 – the brief moment when optimism was

highest, then failed completely.

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TECHNOLOGY – THE GRAF ZEPPELIN (LZ-127)

The Graf Zeppelin was also known as the LZ-127, meaning she was the 127th airship

(Luftschiff-Zeppelin) built by the Zeppelin Airship Company. Airships had been an emerging

technology for many years during the late 19th century. Count Ferdinand Von Zeppelin, a retired

Prussian cavalry officer, had begun building and experimenting with lighter-than-air dirigibles in

1900. By 1908, he had demonstrated a commercially viable airship, the LZ-7, and in 1909 the

Deutsche Luftschiffahrts-Aktien-Gesellschaft (DELAG) German Airship Traffic Company was

established, beginning tourist and passenger service in 1910. (Von Schiller 1982, 118) Before

their impressment into wartime service during the Great War, DELAG successfully completed

1,588 journeys, and carried 34,000 passengers, (Von Schiller 1982, 118) all without the injury or

loss of a single passenger. (Botting 2001, 14) Dr. Hugo Eckener, eventual designer and first

Captain of the Graf Zeppelin, would fly Zeppelins during the war, painfully learning that the

giant airships were mostly unsuited to the demands of military service. (Botting 2001, 62) After

the war, the few remaining zeppelins were turned over to the Allies as part of Germany’s war

reparations, and the Zeppelin Airship Company nearly went out of business. With the 1924

delivery of the LZ-126 to the United States Navy (which would christen her as the U.S.S. Los

Angeles) Eckener seized the opportunity to sell airship technology in the U.S. market, securing

the necessary business partnerships to give the Zeppelin company a new birth. (Botting 2001, 91)

Built between 1926 and 1928, the LZ-127 was financed through a combination of public

and private means, and designed to validate Eckener’s dream of commercially-viable

transoceanic air transport. (Botting 2001, 105) Launched in July and completing flight tests in

September, the Graf Zeppelin made her maiden trans-Atlantic flight in October 1928, and

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Eckener was already preparing for the round-the-world voyage that would follow. After the

successful return to Germany, the Graf Zeppelin made a side trip to Palestine before setting out

for New York to begin the Round-the-World journey. While there she exceeded the depth record

of U-boats at the time while flying over the Dead Sea. Its altitude was 160’ (50 m) over the

surface, but 800’ (244 m) below sea-level. (Von Schiller 1982, 120) At last, in August 1929, the

Graf began the circumnavigation. She flew from New York to Friedrichshafen, Germany; from

Friedrichshafen to Tokyo; Tokyo to Los Angeles; Los Angeles to New York. Her total flight

time: 12 days. (De Syon 2002, 136)

How does the Graf Zeppelin exemplify the “modern” and/or “modernism”? At the time

of her round-the-world flight, the LZ-127 was without a doubt the most successful and

technologically advanced aircraft in the air. (Bottling 2001, 5) She could carry twenty passengers

in comfort and safety spanning thousands of miles between destinations, capabilities beyond the

means of any fixed-wing airplane of the time. (Von Schiller 1982, 119) The U.S., Great Britain

and Italy were all seeking to match Germany in airship technology. (Science News-Letter 1928,

19) At the time of the Graf Zeppelin’s construction, the U.S. had no comparable airship other

than the U.S.S. Los Angeles (the re-named LZ-126!) and was conducting only academic and

theoretical research. (Science News-Letter 1928, 20) Furthermore, the emerging airship

technology reflected the modernist aesthetic of 1920s Germany and America. (De Syon 2002,

132)

The modern advantages of the Graf Zeppelin are neatly illustrated by two incidents that

occurred while in flight. In 1928, circumstances required in-flight repairs to the external control

surfaces, which reduced speed, but validated that, “even a damaged airship could reach its

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destination.” (Von Schiller 1982, 119) Later on, before the 1929 transatlantic move, a series of

engine failures over France required a landing and re-fit of the engines. Although four of five

engines had failed, the LZ-127 was able to land safely. After re-fit, the engines never failed again

while in service. (Von Schiller 1982, 120) In these episodes, the Graf Zeppelin seemingly

affirmed modern perceptions of a technology approaching perfection.

Perhaps nothing better illustrates the fusion of the modern in the Graf Zeppelin’s 1929

circumnavigation than the jazz music that accompanied the passengers around the world.

Passenger William Leeds (a 26-year-old American multi-millionaire) insisted on bringing his

gramophone and records; he and his fellow passengers played fox-trots and danced the

“Charleston.” (Botting 2001, 16) (The jazz made it aboard, but almost not! Eckener tried to

remove the gramophone over weight issues, but acquiesced at the last minute…)

How is “optimism” exemplified or personified in the Graf Zeppelin? From its conception

in 1925, the LZ-127 was planned and proposed by Eckener to be capable of circumnavigation –

no doubt an audacious goal. (Stokely 1927, 98) He envisioned the future of the airship in being

the means to achieve long-distance air service for passengers and cargo. (De Syon 2002, 132) In

this regard, the Graf Zeppelin was successful in every way. Following the triumph of her round-

the-world trip, she began regular scheduled service between Friedrichshafen and Rio de Janeiro.

She carried up to twenty-four passengers: transit cost 1,500 marks (equivalent to £73, $356).

Airmail post was the greatest source of revenue. (Von Schiller 1982, 119) Eckener’s vision was

achieved.

Even more importantly, following the physical destruction and psychic trauma remaining

form the Great War, the Graf Zeppelin served to carry a message of reconciliation and peace

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between former warring nations. (Botting 2001, 107) The LZ-127 was an expression of the best

of the Weimar Republic, a symbol of success and progress that was unmistakably – and

unapologetically - German. Unlike other technologies, the Graf Zeppelin did not have to be

reconciled with the German spirit (Geist); it was already part of that spirit, and in harmony with

the people. (De Syon 2002, 136)

The grand airship reflected a personality that was both singular and compelling. As

described by Lady Grace Hay Drummond-Hay (who had been a passenger aboard the Graf’s

maiden voyage and the round-the-world trip): “The Graf Zeppelin is more than just machinery,

canvas and aluminum,” she notes. “It has a soul. I love the airship as if it were something alive, a

being animated by life, responsive, grateful, capricious and loveable.” (Botting 2001, 18) Upon

visiting Cologne for the first time in 1930, she was described in glowing terms, as “epitomizing

the magical side of technology,” a mythical figure of hope and humanity, brave and ideal. (De

Syon 2002, 139)

THOUGHT – THE PHENOMENOLOGY OF HUSSERL

Edmund Husserl (1859-1938) first presented his concept of Phenomenology with the

1913 publication of Ideen, an academic journal dedicated to scholarly research of the topic.

Husserl would continue to develop phenomenology through his academic work, culminating in

lectures delivered in 1929 and published as The Cartesian Meditations. This work is considered

to be his clearest and most direct explanation of his philosophy. Phenomenology is a method of

epistemology, a means of understanding “understanding”. (Cathcart and Klein 2007, 74) Husserl

based it upon Rene Descartes’ concept of turning philosophy into transcendental subjectivism:

the idea that “knowledge is merely subjective with no external or objective truth” (ODE, 2d ed.)

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(Husserl 1999, 4) He sought to develop philosophy that had the rigor of science centered on

human’s “lived experience” within the context of construal and conclusion. (Turnbull 2002, 150)

The key aspect of Husserl’s philosophy of phenomenology can be summarized as

follows. All understanding of phenomena (that which can be perceived as a unique or distinct

occurrence) results from what an individual can (or has) experienced for him or herself and can

be seen, observed or gathered from another individual on a first-hand basis. Understanding does

not come simply from that which can be assumed or accepted to be proven conclusively.

(Husserl 1999, 151) In other words, Phenomenology holds that true understanding comes from

the direct experience of phenomena, and not from the acceptance of received truth.

How does Phenomenology exemplify “modern” and “modernism”? In the Introduction of

The Cartesian Meditations, Husserl poses the following question:

“We ask now: it is really worthwhile to hunt for an eternal significance belonging

to these thoughts or to clarifiable core that may be contained within them? Are

they still such thoughts as might infuse our times with living forces? (Husserl

1999, 4)

In this we can see the unmistakable characteristics of the modern: a challenge issued to the

individual to find relevance and meaning for the present in the traditional body of knowledge. In

this regard, we might see Husserl as the best example of philosophy working in the modern

tradition. (Drummond 1988, 275) “Phenomenology attempts to understand human experience as

it is lived rather than as objective data.” (Cathcart and Klein 2007, 74) Husserl holds that the

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starting point of philosophy is the entire set or body of original experiences one (an individual)

might have, a field of primordial phenomena (Kockelmans 1967, 29)

Philosophy – wisdom – is individual and unique, intimate and internal (Husserl 1999, 2)

In this way, Husserl is definitively differentiating his philosophy from the traditional and classic

models, which accepted as given that wisdom exists independent and outside of the individual.

Phenomenology develops the two-fold idea that the understanding of a phenomenon involves

determining how the individual engages the phenomenon, (what is the point of personal entry),

and what preconceptions and prejudices he or she brings to it. In this way, the individual is able

to perceive “the thing in itself” (Kockelmans 1967, 29-30) The perception – the intuition of

understanding – exists in itself as a unique phenomenon, whether the exterior world does or not.

(Husserl 1999, 3) Penetrating through the levels and layers of preconceived notions and ideas

leads to the true and full understanding of the phenomena (Kockelmans, 1967, 30)

How is “optimism” exemplified or personified in Husserl’s Phenomenology? The

German word einfuhlung, meaning “feeling into” or “empathy” was used by Phenomenologists

such as Husserl to refer to a mode of knowing that attempts to get inside the experience of

another human being and to know and to feel the world in the same way he or she does.

(Cathcart and Klein 2007, 74) In this respect, Phenomenology is inherently positive, seeking to

understand and validate the experience of others. Both appearance and actuality of this

einfuhlung becomes understood in alignment with the fundamental nature and characteristics of

the phenomenon. (Husserl 1999, 154)

Among the several modes of “phenomenological reduction” (meaning the processes by

which preconceived notions and prejudices are understood) identified by Husserl, one is

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specifically identified as “the reduction of the cultural world to the world of our immediate

experience (or, Lebenswelt)” (Kockelmans 1967, 32) This reduction to Lebenswelt allows one to

see phenomenon as either the shared intuition between individuals or as singular understanding

within the immediate first-person context. Thus, even if unpleasant or distasteful, the intuition is

constructed through the lens of personal self-interest. Husserl’s Phenomenology demonstrates

both modernism and optimism as an expression of “completing (in spirit) transforming (in letter)

and thereby overcoming tradition without breaking off all positive contact” (Drummond 1988,

278)

ART – JAZZ AND “NUR IN SEBASTOPOL”

As with the other cultural artifacts we are considering as signposts of the zeitgeist of

Weimar Germany, jazz developed over a period of time, and so identifying the exact moment

when it came into being is a bit of a challenge. 1915 provides as good a date as any: that was the

year that New Orleans musician Jelly Roll Morton published the score to “Jelly Roll Blues.”

Considered to be the first jazz tune formally documented, Morton had been playing variants of

the tune as early as 1905. (Wikipedia “Jazz”) By 1918, jazz was widely acknowledged as a

unique genre, recognizable as a form of “individual self-expression and collective affirmation”

that was distinctively American. (Ross 2007, 128) Berlin was the “Mecca” for German jazz,

having an urban, cosmopolitan population base with the financial means to support a broad range

of musical tastes. (Kater 1992, 8)

As the cultural capital of Germany, Berliner jazz was a reflection of the fusion between

numerous disparate cultural influences. This fusion is represented in such works as Christopher

Isherwood’s 1939 novel, “Goodbye to Berlin,” John Van Druten’s 1951 play, “I Am A Camera,”

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(which was the basis for the 1966 musical, “Cabaret”) and Jason Lutes’ 2008 graphic novel,

“Berlin: City of Smoke.” Having initially developed in America and brought to Germany as a

result of the post-World War occupation, German jazz was an amalgamation of African-

American, black and Jewish influences. Regrettably this made a it target of the prevalent racism

and anti-Semitism found within the broader German culture. (Kater 1992, 20-1)

How does Jazz exemplify “modern” and/or “modernism”? Following the defeat of

Imperial Germany in the Great war and the establishment of the Weimar Republic in 1919, many

creative voices embraced jazz as “the music of this decade” – an expression of the greater

democracy, equality and freedom that were coming with growth of modernism. (Kater 1992, 17)

The embrace of jazz revealed a desire among some segments of German society for American

culture and American accomplishments.

Jazz is the very essence of “modernism” – a style of music that deliberately departs from

classical or traditional forms and emphasizes the individual performer above orchestral or

collective music making. It is defined by the by the bending and/or breaking of diatonic scales;

the distortion of instrumental timbre; the layering of rhythms, and the blurring of distinction

between verbal and non-verbal sound (Ross 2007, 122) Performance and improvisation is central

to jazz identity, the interpretation of the musical elements into a uniquely individual expression,

to the extent that it can be argued that performance (and not the recorded works) is what defines

jazz. (Kania 2013, 14) The elements of jazz – the “tools in the tool-box” – are:

• Syncopated rhythms

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• Melody lines that use scalar elements not exclusively triadic or diatonic (western),

incorporating “flatted thirds, sevenths, ninths”

• Harmonies based on mirrored melody in a vertical fashion, such as raising a four-

bar run chromatically by a half-tone

• Tonal inflection (think the “wa-wah” of a muted horn)

Some or all four elements may be reflected within the improvisation of the musician(s) (Kater

1992, 13-4) This is what makes jazz “modern” – the individual expression of the musician(s)

building upon or derivative of the conventional elements of western music theory and practice.

How is “optimism” exemplified or personified in the Jazz of Weimar Berlin? Jazz

emerged in German during a period when there was a significant desire for healing, a “hunger

for wholeness,” in recovery from the national trauma of the Great War. (Ross 2007, 183) The

fresh and novel flavor of jazz – its inherent modernism – suggests progress and the prospect of

improvement. As discussed below, there was significant social disruption and internal conflict

going on during the 1920’s, and jazz was only one of several markers of that struggle.

Throughout the literature concerning the culture of Weimar Germany, jazz is portrayed as

the voice of the optimistic and modern. As demonstrated in the song “Nur in Sebastopol”,

Berliner Jazz typically has an up-beat tempo and is easy to dance to. (Think of the Charleston,

Foxtrot, or Lindy Hop.) Even audience members who were not trained musicians (most people)

can hear and recognize the improvisations and embellishments inherent in jazz, and can sense

that the music expresses a more free-flowing and individual style than conventional or classical

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forms. How the audience responds emotionally to this perceived "difference" leads to a reaction,

(either one of optimism and acceptance, or rejection and dismissal.)

Furthermore, one of the recognized characteristics of jazz is the use of a harmonizing

"mirror" played a half-step above the melody. This will often result in a minor key (producing a

distinctive sound also often associated with Jewish Klezmer music.) This technique can inject a

tempering to an otherwise bright or light melody line. It is the skill of the musician and the

ability to improvise such an embellishment that makes it jazz, and what strikes one as optimistic

in that the use of minor and diminished chords and arrangements that still leaves the listener with

a positive sense.

“Nur in Sebastopol” by the Wientraub Syncopaters

“Nur in Sebastopol” is a prime example of the Berliner jazz of the Weimar Era. (Follow

the link here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upzEMqvdVcA to listen.) Recorded in 1929 at

the Berlin Singing Academy, for the Electrola Company, Berlin, it was composed by Ernst

Steffan and performed by the Weitraub Syncopaters. German’s best known jazz combo, they

were very popular at nightclubs such as the Scala in Berlin, and appeared in The Blue Angel,

(1930) the movie that made Marlene Dietrich famous. (Kater 1992, 5) Initially, German jazz

reflected a comic flavor, hiding the improvisations of the musicians within a camouflage of

accepted frivolity. Started as an amateur schoolboy band 1924 with each musician able to play

multiple instruments, the Weintraub Syncopaters like most jazz bands employed comedic

aspects, but by the second-half of the decade, such antics were fading away. (Kater 1992, 15) In

this song we can hear all four of the defining characteristics of jazz discussed above fused by the

improvisations that make jazz, “jazz.”

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The song opens with a parody of the “Dance of the Cossacks” (“Prisyadka”) and later

includes the opening phrase of the well-known “Song of the Volga Boatmen,” two easily

recognized melodies that immediately and unmistakably suggest Russia, and therefore

“Sebastopol”. The use of tone quality to modify the textures produced by similar types of

instruments is prominent in the first 40 measures of the song there are 4 distinct shifts in timbre.

The first 16 measures are horn, the next 4 measures are reed, the next 12 are horn, the next 4 are

reed, and the final 4 are back to horn. These shifts give a distinct feeling or characterization to

the beginning of the song. Syncopation can be found in the underlying beat produced not only by

the percussion but a lower section of horns, almost an ostinato (meaning a “continually repeated

musical phrase or rhythm. Italian, literally ‘obstinate’ – ODE, 2d ed.) There are two examples of

harmonization using a chromatic scale raised a half-measure above the melody line. The first

occurs between the first and second measures, at 1:20 and the second follows at 1:55.

Improvisation occurs throughout the song; an easily recognized example is an exchange

between a clarinet and a trombone. Beginning at 2:30 into the song, the improvisation starts with

clarinet. At 2:44 the trombone answers back, and then at 2:52 the clarinet responds. There is also

a piano improvisation that is happening in the background at the same time as the trombone

improvisation but it is not as prominent. This back and forth play helps to promote an overall

whimsical theme of the song. (Discussion with Christine Summers, April 29, 2014, e-mail to

author)

ANALYSIS

As discussed above, Hegel holds that zeitgeist – the “spirit of the time” – is an expression

of the character, culture and progress of a particular society and that zeitgeist is manifested by

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the technology, thought and art that society produces. (Houlgate 2005, 10) Given this, two

questions emerge from our consideration of these particular cultural benchmarks of the zeitgeist

of Weimar Germany. The first is: are they related to each other – does one lead to another? The

second is why (or how) did the optimism inherent in each of these artifacts fail? In considering

how each of these three are related, outside of the characteristic optimism of the Graf Zeppelin’s

technological achievements, and her 1929 round-the-world flight, the airship offers no intrinsic

link to either the philosophy of Husserl or the Berliner Jazz typified by “Nur in Sebastopol.”

Therefore, let us set it aside for now. This leaves us with Husserl’s Phenomenology and jazz

music: are they connected?

There is no evidence to suggest Husserl was directly influenced by the development of

jazz in the United States before it was brought to Germany in 1918-1919. However,

Phenomenology as described by Husserl developmentally parallels the emergence of jazz in

Weimar Germany, and no other formal system of philosophy better expresses the individual and

optimistic nature inherent in jazz music. Phenomenology requires seeking the “origins and

beginnings,” of the phenomena, down to point of personal entry – where does the “I” intersect

with the phenomena? Husserl refers to this process of understanding as one of “reduction”, a

methodical process of removing held preconceptions and prejudices so as to be able to perceive

“the thing in itself” (“Zu den Sachen selbst”) (Kockelmans 1967, 29-30) Phenomenology’s focus

is squarely upon the individual’s understanding of foundational elements in and of themselves,

independent of external context, just as in jazz. Husserl’s methodology – what he called “eidetic

reduction,” meaning to move from the realm of facts to general ideas – emphasizes the centrality

of individual versus collective (or common) knowledge. Husserl expresses this as “validity

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independent of experience”. (Kockelman 1967, 31) This is the essence of jazz – a musical

expression that does not require or expect the validation of convention - meaning that it is not

dependent on being modeled after a standard form.

Recent scholarship has interpreted Husserl’s philosophy as directly based upon an

individual’s conscious action and deliberative choice, to include: reflection on experience;

application of a mental framework or hierarchy of perception which considers that which has

occurred, and; perception of tone. (Lewin 1986, 328) Although a formal philosophical ontology

for jazz has only been undertaken in the late 20th century, some 60 years after the coincidence of

jazz and Husserl in 1929 Weimar Germany, (Kania 2013, 13) Husserl’s transcendental

philosophy “clarifies the nature of our everyday experiences,” which means that it does not

impose a preconception of experience or categories upon the experience. In other words, it

makes central the individual expression and interpretation (Drummond 1988, 283) In this we

have additional corroboration of the linkage between Husserl’s phenomenology and the essential

spirit or essence of jazz. Performance and improvisation is central to jazz identity, the

interpretation of the musical elements into a uniquely individual expression, to the extent that it

can be argued that performance (and not the recorded works) is what defines jazz. (Kania 2013,

14) While each of the unique and distinctive musical elements may or may not be used, it is the

improvisation by soloists within the combo that defines jazz – if there is no improvisation it is

not jazz. (Ross 2007, 128) Among the several modes of “phenomenological reduction” identified

by Husserl, one is specifically identified as “the reduction of the cultural world to the world of

our immediate experience (or, Lebenswelt)” (Kockelmans 1967, 32) In this, the character of the

phenomena being considered becomes understood within the character of the act of

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understanding. (Kockelmans 1967, 33) It only becomes jazz when it is an improvisation by the

musician through a combination of interpretive elements. Jazz did not come from

Phenomenology, but they developed during the same era and within the same cultural milieu.

One is not the parent of the other, but likewise, if they are not siblings, then they are cousins.

Recognizing the family relationship between Husserl’s philosophy and jazz music brings

us to the second question of analysis: What do the artifacts we’re considering here reveal about

the failure of hope in the Weimar Republic? Each one presents unique and individual

circumstances, but after peaking in 1929, all would follow a path of decline as another zeitgeist

ascended to represent Germany in the following decades. As discussed above, airship technology

emerged before either Husserl’s Phenomenology or the rise of Berliner Jazz. The Graff Zeppelin

would outlast the Weimar Republic by some four years. Grounded following the Hindenburg

disaster in 1937, she was decommissioned shortly afterwards and never flew again. Ironically,

the German airship safety record had been perfect until 1937. Ill-suited to military usage, all of

the significant airship disasters (such as the USS Macon and USS Akron) occurred during non-

zeppelin military operations. The Hindenburg was the only civilian zeppelin loss, but it shattered

confidence in hydrogen-filled airships. Under development at the time, had the Graf Zeppelin II

been built (specifically designed for the use of helium rather than hydrogen) it might well have

forestalled or retarded the transition to passenger transcontinental travel using heavier-than-air

technology. However, lingering memories of wartime use of airships by the Germans in World

War I remained, and with the rise of the National Socialists and their blatant militarism, fear of

airship use for war increased. The U.S. refused to sell helium to the Zeppelin Company, and the

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airships were dismantled in 1940, their aluminum alloy structures being re-purposed to build

airplanes for the Luftwaffe.

Edmund Husserl also outlasted the Weimar Republic by five years, but as a result of his

Jewish heritage, he was marginalized and overlooked in academia following the rise of the

National Socialists. There were at least two other contemporary philosophers in Weimar

Germany in 1929: Martin Heidegger (Husserl’s former student) and Oswald Spengler. The

following two quotes are used to illustrate why Husserl is the best expression of optimism and

hope within the philosophical trends of Weimar Germany.

“Out of the resoluteness of the German students to stand their ground while

German destiny is at its most extreme distress comes a will to the essence of the

university. This will is a true will, provided that German students, through the

new Student Law, place themselves under the law of their essence and thereby

first define this essence. To give oneself the law is the highest freedom.”

(Heidegger 1990, 10)

“Time does not suffer itself to be halted: there is no question prudent retreat or

wise renunciation. Only dreamers believe that there is a way out. Optimism is

cowardice. (Author’s italics) We are born into this time and must bravely follow

the path to the destined end. There is no other way.” (Spengler 2002, 104)

As is clearly indicated by the sample quotes, neither is an appropriate expression of the zeitgeist.

Heidegger is optimistic, but he is not modern. Rather he is seeking a revised vision of the

German nation in the model of Classical Greece. Spengler is modern, but not optimistic,

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advocating a form of “bravery in the face of decline”. The philosophy of both men would be

used to some degree or another by the National Socialists as they came to power, as well as

Hegel’s concept of the “arc of history” itself.

Jazz failed for two reasons. One was its association with the libertine elements of the

Berlin that alienated the socially conservative segments of German society, making it easy to be

stigmatized by the National Socialists as they rose to power. For example, local Nazi party leader

and social critic Joseph Goebbels referred to The Blue Angel as “offal spewed out by the fetid

city” (of Berlin) (Kater 1992, 23) As an American musical form, inseparable from its African-

American roots and Jewish cosmopolitanism, jazz was seen as being the voice of those who had

defeated Germany in the Great War and profited from the Allied occupation. Two, having

initially developed in America and brought to German as a result of the post-World War

occupation, German jazz was an amalgamation of African-American, black and Jewish

influences. Thus it was a target of the prevalent racism and anti-Semitism found within the

broader German culture. (Kater 1992, 20-1) The fate of the Weintraub Syncopaters (nearly all

Jewish) once more serves as a microcosm of how the jazz community was decimated by the rise

of the National Socialists. In the spring of 1933, they departed Germany to tour Europe, and then

in September expand the tour to the world, including the U.S.S.R., Japan and Australia). Stefan

Weintraub retires in Australia, and the band never returns to Germany.

CONCLUSION

That the National Socialists rose to power and led Germany and the rest of the world onto

the “slaughter bench” of World War II is self-evident. Countless books and scholarly works have

considered this bloody and horrific era, and as will countless more yet to be written. As

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discussed in this paper, before the Nazis seized power there had been a window of time in which

the potential for hope – the promise of modernism and progress – had existed in the Weimar

Republic. The technology of the Graf Zeppelin, the philosophy of Edmund Husserl, and the

Berliner Jazz of 1929 all testify to the optimism that struggled and ultimately failed to gain

dominance within Germany following the Great War. These artifacts of German culture reveal

the struggle between the competing zeitgeists – the “spirits of the times.” Such conflict between

zeitgeists illustrate the path of history as described by Hegel – the dialectic between thesis and

antithesis that results in synthesis, and the arc moves ever-forward.

The poem that follows is the final element. It was written by Oscar Williams, July 2,

1939, two months before the start of World War II. It captures how the symbolic optimism and

confidence, the inherent buoyancy that peaked in the previous decade has been utterly lost – the

airship now perceived not as a technology of hope, but as a harbinger of war and doom.

“On the Summer Sky the Airship Hangs”

On the summer sky the airship hangs,

Slow motion bullet of a god,

While the red sun, lead end of a gun,

Smokes at the forehead of all dream.

The Sunday housetops line the world,

The Sunday papers fill the rooms,

The headlines drain the human veins

Pouring the future in a stream. 21

And mankind lies beneath the towers

Against the rising wall of cloud:

In wedge and torture boot of hours

From the jowled silence comes the scream.

And Sunday leans upon the town

Enormous seraph with heirloom brow:

From the blue eye of the blond sky

Who shall cast out his mammoth beam?

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