Prof. Schmidgen, Prof. Eckardt, you have both been studying and researching Maurice Halbwachs extensively for quite some time. You also organised a conference in his honour a few years ago. Can you give us an impression of Halbwachs as a sociologist and as a person?  How did he come to be imprisoned at Buchenwald?

Prof. Eckardt: Maurice Halbwachs was part of the second generation of French sociologists. He belonged to the school of Émile Durkheim, who understood society as shaped by social structures influenced by industrialisation. Halbwachs’ early works included studies on the living conditions workers in France. Over time, he emancipated himself intellectually from the sociological school of »Structuralism« and addressing topics that couldn’t be understood statistically but through what we today call qualitative or real-life studies. This led Halbwachs to engaging with questions of collective memory, an idea for which is is still very well-known for today.

Maurice Halbwachs identified as a »normalien«, a term for intellectuals who believed in contributing to society through their intellectual work and research. For this reason, he was closely associated with the Socialist Party, despite not subscribing to any specific agenda or even thinking orthodoxly. On the contrary, he was an intellectual who thought beyond borders and in concrete terms – even towards Germany, France’s arch-enemy at the time.  It is thanks to Maurice Halbwachs that Max Weber gained so much attention in French sociology.

Prof. Schmidgen: This makes Halbwachs’ fate all the more shocking. In the summer of 1944, he was deported to Buchenwald concentration camp after having been arrested by the Gestapo in Paris. The pretext for his arrest was that he had been harbouring his son Pierre, who was an active member of the French Resistance. Halbwachs’ wife, Yvonne, who was Jewish, managed to escape, but Pierre had already been arrested and deported to Buchenwald, though he survived. Maurice Halbwachs died at the camp in March 1945 as a result of the harsh conditions.

Halbwachs epitomises the idea of »Collective Memory« more than anyone else. This term might not be familiar to everyone. Could you explain it to us?

Prof. Eckardt: In a nutshell, Halbwachs believed that memory is not a random, unchanging individual experience. He argued that memory is highly dependent on the social environment and circumstances in which the individual doing the remembering finds themselves. This approach has become more accepted today in the context of memory politics, but Halbwachs’ analysis of the sociological contexts of memory sparked extensive discussions about the relationship between memory and society.  His ideas underscore the complexity of this relationship and defines it using examples such as language or spaces. Halbwachs’ insights have led to questioning self-evident assumptions about memory, even if we now think differently about what his analyses reveal, partly due to an improved understanding of the neurobiology of memory.

An important motivation for renaming the lecture hall is the relevance of Halbwachs’ work today. What aspects of his research do you find particularly significant from the perspectives of media studies and urban studies? Why is engaging with Halbwachs important for students?

Prof. Schmidgen: As central as collective memory was to Halbwachs, if we consider the full scope of his work—his contributions to understanding the »average individual«, the needs of the working class, and urban sociology—the relationship between humans and their environment stands out as a key theme. Halbwachs was consistently seeking to understand how human behaviour and experiences are shaped by both the social and material environment, such as the city. He also explored how individuals can shape their environment and intervene in its design. This can be understood today as a form of ecology, illustrating the continued relevance of his work. It’s important to remember, however, that Halbwachs focused on a social class specialized in dealing with such subjects: the workers.

Prof. Eckardt: In many respects, Maurice Halbwachs’ work and life provide an important opportunity to reflect and scrutinise aspects of our own thinking. Even under the difficult circumstances in the 1930s, Halbwachs maintained an optimistic view of the positive impact science could have on social progress.  Today, this positive attitude is no longer taken for granted; science faces massive hostility, and many people no longer trust scientific evidence. How can this be restored? Halbwachs was extremely sceptical of field research, such as that conducted in urban studies, and his criticism comes to the fore in matters like migration, which he made clear in his debate with the Chicago School Have we in urban studies allowed ourselves to be led down a methodological dead-end?  Do we need to return to a focus on social structures? These are provocative questions for urbanism, especially when planning for specific places and people.  Halbwachs is a necessary thorn in our side.

By renaming the Audimax, the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar is creating a memorial to Halbwachs, bringing his life and the history of the Buchenwald concentration camp into the public awareness. How political is this renaming?

Prof. Eckardt: The renaming is very relevant in terms of social politics.  It is a call to action against the growing narrative that trivialises National Socialist crimes and conceals the suppression of science, free debate, and research. Halbwachs represents the values of critical thinking, questioning, doubting, and conducting research that extends beyond one's own perspectives. This emphasizes the importance of personal and societal learning processes through original scientific work, promoting tolerance, a variety of opinions, and empathy—values that are increasingly being challenged by populist movements advocating single-minded beliefs.

Prof. Schmidgen: Our initiative is intended to anchor the memory of victims of National Socialist tyranny to the centre of university life. We wanted to send a clear message, both internally and externally, that we acknowledge our responsibility to recognize recent German history and that we oppose all forms of totalitarian violence, especially when it affects members of the academic community. 

Memory must and should be preserved. What events or initiatives could you envision to keep the memory of Halbwachs alive in the future?

Prof. Schmidgen: There are many ways to do this — from incorporating Halbwachs’ work into seminars and lectures to organizing conferences based on the remarkable scope of his research. For example, Halbwachs worked extensively with Leibniz’s philosophy. Translating more of his work into German would also help, as only a fraction of it is currently available.  Additionally, his fate at Buchenwald can serve as a motivation to explore the stories of other academics who were also imprisoned there.  For instance, around 120 members of the Université de Strasbourg, where Halbwachs taught, were deported to Buchenwald; only about half returned after liberation.

Prof. Eckardt: It’s clear that we need to continue engaging with collective memory through our university’s teaching and research programs. However, Halbwachs’ work and life provide many more opportunities for contemporary reflection. Many of the social problems that were taboo in his time remain so today. One such issue is suicide, which preoccupied Halbwachs and continues to be a subject rarely discussed in public.  Addressing this and identifying the gaps in psychological help would certainly align with his ideas.

Prof. Schmidgen, Prof. Eckardt, thank you for the interview.

Questions asked by Claudia Weinreich.

Dates

24 October 2024

Book Launch: The book »Témoignages strasbourgeois. Berichte französischer Überlebender der Konzentrationslager Buchenwald und Mittelbau-Dora« will be presented at the Library Lounge on 24 October at 6 pm.

Prof. Dr. Jens-Christian Wagner, Director of the Buchenwald Memorial and Mittelbau-Dora Memorial, and Prof. Dr. Henning Schmidgen, Professor of »Medientheorie und Wissenschaftsgeschichte« at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, will be guiding the event and providing insights into a moving discussion on the personal experiences of survivors.

4 December 2024

The Renaming Ceremony is scheduled to take place on 4 December 2024.