Friedrich Albert Moritz Schlick (; ; 14 April 1882 – 22 June 1936) was a German philosopher, physicist, and the founding father of

logical positivism Logical positivism, later called logical empiricism, and both of which together are also known as neopositivism, is a movement in Western philosophy whose central thesis was the verification principle (also known as the verifiability criterion o ...

and the

Vienna Circle The Vienna Circle (german: Wiener Kreis) of Logical Empiricism was a group of elite philosophers and scientists drawn from the natural and social sciences, logic and mathematics who met regularly from 1924 to 1936 at the University of Vienna, ch ...

Early life and works

Schlick was born in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

to a wealthy Prussian family with deep nationalist and conservative traditions. His father was Ernst Albert Schlick and his mother was Agnes Arndt. At the age of sixteen, he started to read Descartes' ''Meditations'' and

Schopenhauer Arthur Schopenhauer ( , ; 22 February 1788 – 21 September 1860) was a German philosopher. He is best known for his 1818 work ''The World as Will and Representation'' (expanded in 1844), which characterizes the phenomenal world as the pr ...

's ''Die beiden Grundprobleme der Ethik''.

Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (; or ; 15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher, prose poet, cultural critic, philologist, and composer whose work has exerted a profound influence on contemporary philosophy. He began his car ...

's ''

Also sprach Zarathustra ', Op. 30 (, ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra'' or ''Thus Spake Zarathustra'') is a tone poem by Richard Strauss, composed in 1896 and inspired by Friedrich Nietzsche's philosophical 1883–1885 novel ''Thus Spoke Zarathustra''. He studied

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which ...

at the

University of Heidelberg } Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg, (german: Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg; la, Universitas Ruperto Carola Heidelbergensis) is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, ...

, the

University of Lausanne The University of Lausanne (UNIL; french: links=no, Université de Lausanne) in Lausanne, Switzerland was founded in 1537 as a school of Protestant theology, before being made a university in 1890. The university is the second oldest in Switzer ...

, and, ultimately, the

University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative ...

under

Max Planck Max Karl Ernst Ludwig Planck (, ; 23 April 1858 – 4 October 1947) was a German theoretical physicist whose discovery of energy quanta won him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1918. Planck made many substantial contributions to theoretical p ...

. Schlick explained this choice in his autobiography by saying that, despite his love for philosophy, he believed that only

mathematical physics Mathematical physics refers to the development of mathematical methods for application to problems in physics. The '' Journal of Mathematical Physics'' defines the field as "the application of mathematics to problems in physics and the developm ...

could help him obtain actual and exact knowledge. He felt deep distrust towards any metaphysical speculation. In 1904, he completed his

PhD thesis A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...

at the University of Berlin under the supervision of Planck. Schlick's thesis was titled ''Über die Reflexion des Lichts in einer inhomogenen Schicht'' (''On the Reflection of Light in a Non-Homogeneous Medium''). After a year as

Privatdozent ''Privatdozent'' (for men) or ''Privatdozentin'' (for women), abbreviated PD, P.D. or Priv.-Doz., is an academic title conferred at some European universities, especially in German-speaking countries, to someone who holds certain formal qualific ...

at Göttingen, he turned to the study of philosophy in Zurich. In 1907, he married Blanche Hardy. In 1908, he published ''Lebensweisheit'' (''The Wisdom of Life''), a slim volume about

eudaemonism Eudaimonia (Greek: εὐδαιμονία ; sometimes anglicized as eudaemonia or eudemonia, ) is a Greek word literally translating to the state or condition of 'good spirit', and which is commonly translated as 'happiness' or 'welfare'. In wor ...

, the theory that happiness results from the pursuit of personal fulfillment as opposed to passing pleasures. His

habilitation Habilitation is the highest university degree, or the procedure by which it is achieved, in many European countries. The candidate fulfills a university's set criteria of excellence in research, teaching and further education, usually including ...

thesis at the

University of Rostock The University of Rostock (german: link=no, Universität Rostock) is a public university located in Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany. Founded in 1419, it is the third-oldest university in Germany. It is the oldest university in continen ...

, ''Das Wesen der Wahrheit nach der modernen Logik'' (''The Nature of Truth According to Modern Logic''), was published in 1910. Several essays about

aesthetics Aesthetics, or esthetics, is a branch of philosophy that deals with the nature of beauty and taste, as well as the philosophy of art (its own area of philosophy that comes out of aesthetics). It examines aesthetic values, often expressed t ...

followed, whereupon Schlick turned his attention to problems of

epistemology Epistemology (; ), or the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemology is considered a major subfield of philosophy, along with other major subfields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics. Epi ...

, the

philosophy of science Philosophy of science is a branch of philosophy concerned with the foundations, methods, and implications of science. The central questions of this study concern what qualifies as science, the reliability of scientific theories, and the ultim ...

, and more general questions about

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...

. In this last category, Schlick distinguished himself by publishing a paper in 1915 about

Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born Theoretical physics, theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for d ...

special theory of relativity In physics, the special theory of relativity, or special relativity for short, is a scientific theory regarding the relationship between space and time. In Albert Einstein's original treatment, the theory is based on two postulates: # The law ...

, a topic only ten years old. He also published ''Raum und Zeit in der gegenwärtigen Physik'' (''Space and Time in Contemporary Physics''), which extended his earlier results by applying Poincaré's geometric conventionalism to explain Einstein's adoption of a

non-Euclidean geometry In mathematics, non-Euclidean geometry consists of two geometries based on axioms closely related to those that specify Euclidean geometry. As Euclidean geometry lies at the intersection of metric geometry and affine geometry, non-Euclidean g ...

in the

general theory of relativity General relativity, also known as the general theory of relativity and Einstein's theory of gravity, is the differential geometry, geometric scientific theory, theory of gravitation published by Albert Einstein in 1915 and is the current descr ...

The Vienna Circle and Wittgenstein

After early appointments at Rostock and Kiel, in 1922 Schlick assumed the chair of

Naturphilosophie ''Naturphilosophie'' (German for "nature-philosophy") is a term used in English-language philosophy to identify a current in the philosophical tradition of German idealism, as applied to the study of nature in the earlier 19th century. German s ...

at the

University of Vienna The University of Vienna (german: Universität Wien) is a public research university located in Vienna, Austria. It was founded by Duke Rudolph IV in 1365 and is the oldest university in the German-speaking world. With its long and rich hi ...

which had previously been held by

Ludwig Boltzmann Ludwig Eduard Boltzmann (; 20 February 1844 – 5 September 1906) was an Austrian physicist and philosopher. His greatest achievements were the development of statistical mechanics, and the statistical explanation of the second law of ther ...

and

Ernst Mach Ernst Waldfried Josef Wenzel Mach ( , ; 18 February 1838 – 19 February 1916) was a Moravian-born Austrian physicist and philosopher, who contributed to the physics of shock waves. The ratio of one's speed to that of sound is named the Mach n ...

. Schlick displayed an unusual success in organizing talented individuals in the philosophical and scientific spheres. When Schlick arrived in Vienna, he was invited to lead a group of scientists and philosophers who met regularly (on Thursday evenings in the Chemistry Building) to discuss philosophical topics in the sciences. Early members included the mathematician Hans Hahn and, within a few years, they were joined by

Rudolf Carnap Rudolf Carnap (; ; 18 May 1891 – 14 September 1970) was a German-language philosopher who was active in Europe before 1935 and in the United States thereafter. He was a major member of the Vienna Circle and an advocate of logical positivism. ...

, Herbert Feigl,

Kurt Gödel Kurt Friedrich Gödel ( , ; April 28, 1906 – January 14, 1978) was a logician, mathematician, and philosopher. Considered along with Aristotle and Gottlob Frege to be one of the most significant logicians in history, Gödel had an imm ...

, Otto Neurath, Friedrich Waismann, and others. They initially called themselves the

Association, but they eventually became best known as the

. In the years 1925–26, the Thursday night group discussed recent work in the foundations of mathematics by

Gottlob Frege Friedrich Ludwig Gottlob Frege (; ; 8 November 1848 – 26 July 1925) was a German philosopher, logician, and mathematician. He was a mathematics professor at the University of Jena, and is understood by many to be the father of analytic p ...

Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, a ...

, and

Ludwig Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian- British philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. He is consi ...

. Wittgenstein's book, ''

Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus The ''Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus'' (widely abbreviated and cited as TLP) is a book-length philosophical work by the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein which deals with the relationship between language and reality and aims to define th ...

'', was a work that advanced, among other things, a logical theory of

symbol A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...

ism and a "picture" or "model" theory of language. Schlick and his group were impressed by the work, devoting considerable time to its study and, even when it was no longer the principal focus of their discussion, it was mentioned in discussion. Eventually Wittgenstein agreed to meet with Schlick and other Circle members to discuss the ''Tractatus'' and other ideas, but he later found it necessary to restrict the visitors to sympathetic interlocutors. Through Schlick's influence, Wittgenstein was encouraged to consider a return to philosophy after some ten years away from the field. Schlick and Waismann's discussions with Wittgenstein continued until the latter felt that germinal ideas had been used without permission in an essay by Carnap, a charge of dubious merit. But he continued discussions in letters to Schlick after he no longer met with other Circle members.

''General Theory of Knowledge'' and later works

Schlick had worked on his ''Allgemeine Erkenntnislehre'' (''General Theory of Knowledge'') between 1918 and 1925, and, though later developments in his philosophy were to make various contentions of his epistemology untenable, the ''General Theory'' is perhaps his greatest work in its acute reasoning against synthetic ''a priori'' knowledge. This critique of synthetic ''a priori'' knowledge argues that the only truths which are self-evident to reason are statements which are true as a matter of definition, such as the statements of formal logic and mathematics. The truth of all other statements must be evaluated with reference to

empirical evidence Empirical evidence for a proposition is evidence, i.e. what supports or counters this proposition, that is constituted by or accessible to sense experience or experimental procedure. Empirical evidence is of central importance to the sciences ...

. If a statement is proposed which is not a matter of definition, and not capable of being confirmed or falsified by evidence, that statement is "metaphysical", which is synonymous with "meaningless", or "nonsense". This is the principle upon which members of the Vienna Circle were most clearly in agreement—with each other, as well as with Wittgenstein.

''Problems of Ethics''

Between 1926 and 1930, Schlick labored to finish ''Fragen der Ethik'' (''Problems of Ethics''), in which he surprised some of his fellow Circlists by including

ethics Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concer ...

as a viable branch of philosophy. In his 1932–33 contribution to ''Erkenntnis'', "Positivism and Realism", Schlick offered one of the most illuminating definitions of

positivism Positivism is an empiricist philosophical theory that holds that all genuine knowledge is either true by definition or positive—meaning ''a posteriori'' facts derived by reason and logic from sensory experience.John J. Macionis, Linda M. G ...

as every view "which denies the possibility of metaphysics" (Schlick 932–1933 p. 260). Accordingly, he defined metaphysics as the doctrine of "true being", "thing in itself" or "transcendental being", a doctrine which obviously "presupposes that a non-true, lesser or apparent being stands opposed to it" (Ibid). Therefore, in this work he bases the positivism on a kind of epistemology which holds that the only true beings are givens or constituents of experience. Also during this time, the Vienna Circle published ''The Scientific View of the World: The Vienna Circle'' as a homage to Schlick. Its strong anti-metaphysical stance crystallized the viewpoint of the group.

Comment on Wittgenstein's ''Tractatus''

, in his book ''Logical Syntax of Language'', included a comment by Schlick on Wittgenstein's ''Tractatus''.

Death

Universität Wien Philosophenstiege,GT Moritz Schlick

With the rise of the

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

in Germany and

Austrofascism The Fatherland Front ( de-AT, Vaterländische Front, ''VF'') was the right-wing conservative, nationalist and corporatist ruling political organisation of the Federal State of Austria. It claimed to be a nonpartisan Nonpartisanism is a lack ...

in Austria, many of the Vienna Circle's members left for the United States and the United Kingdom. Schlick, however, stayed on at the University of Vienna. When visited by Herbert Feigl in 1935, he expressed dismay at events in Germany. On 22 June 1936, Schlick was ascending the steps of the university for a class when he was confronted by a former student,

Johann Nelböck Johann "Hans" Nelböck (May 12, 1903 – February 3, 1954) was an Austrian former student and murderer of Moritz Schlick, the founder of the group of philosophers and scientists known as the Vienna Circle. After attending the gymnasium in Wels, ...

, who killed Schlick with a pistol. The court declared Nelböck to be fully ''

compos mentis A number of Latin terms are used in legal terminology and legal maxims. This is a partial list of these terms, which are wholly or substantially drawn from Latin. __TOC__ Common law Civil law Ecclesiastical law See also * B ...

''; he confessed to the act and was detained without any resistance, but was unrepentant. The killer used the judicial proceedings as a chance to present himself and his ideology in the public. He claimed that Schlick's anti-metaphysical philosophy had "interfered with his moral restraint". In another version of the events, the murderer covered up all political causes and claimed that he was motivated by jealousy over his failed attachment to the female student Sylvia Borowicka, leading to a paranoid delusion about Schlick as his rival and persecutor. Nelböck was tried and sentenced, but the event became a distorted ''

cause célèbre A cause célèbre (,''Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged'', 12th Edition, 2014. S.v. "cause célèbre". Retrieved November 30, 2018 from https://www.thefreedictionary.com/cause+c%c3%a9l%c3%a8bre ,''Random House Kernerman Webs ...

'' around which crystallized the growing nationalist and anti-Jewish sentiments in the city. The fact that Schlick was not Jewish did not seem to matter to propagandists capitalizing on the crime, who associated Schlick with Jewish members of the intelligentsia. After the annexation of Austria into Nazi Germany in 1938, the murderer was released on probation after serving two years of a 10-year sentence.

Legacy

Schlick's enduring contribution to the world of philosophy is as the founder of

. His humanity, good will, gentleness, and especially his encouragement have been documented by many of his peers. Herbert Feigl and Albert Blumberg, in their introduction to the ''General Theory of Knowledge'', wrote,

Works

* ''Lebensweisheit. Versuch einer Glückseligkeitslehre''. Munich, Becksche Verlagsbuchhandlung 1908Reprinted in Vol. I/3 of the ''Moritz Schlick Gesamtausgabe'' * "Das Wesen der Wahrheit nach der modernen Logik", in: ''Vierteljahrsschrift für wissenschaftliche Philosophie und Soziologie'', Jg. 34, 1910, p. 386–477 * "Die philosophische Bedeutung des Relativitätsprinzips", in: ''

Zeitschrift für Philosophie und philosophische Kritik The ''Zeitschrift für Philosophie und philosophische Kritik'' was an academic journal. It was established in 1837 by editor-in-chief Immanuel Hermann Fichte as ''Zeitschrift für Philosophie und spekulative Theologie'' and renamed in 1847. Notabl ...

'', 159, 1915, S. 129–175 * ''Raum und Zeit in der gegenwärtigen Physik''. Berlin: Verlag von Julius Springer 1917 (4th ed. 1922) * ''Hermann von Helmholtz. Schriften zur Erkenntnistheorie'' (Publishers: Moritz Schlick & Paul Hertz). Berlin: Springer 1921 * ''Allgemeine Erkenntnislehre''. Berlin: Verlag von Julius Springer 1918 (2nd edition 1925) * "Kritizistische oder empiristische Deutung der neuen Physik?", in: ''

Kant-Studien ''Kant-Studien'' ("Kant Studies") is a quarterly journal of philosophy, focusing on Immanuel Kant. The journal was established in 1897. It publishes articles in English and German. See also * List of philosophy journals This is a list of academic ...

'', 26, 1921, p. 96–111 * "Einsteins Relativitätstheorie". In: ''Mosse Almanach'', 1921, S. 105–123. * "Erleben, Erkennen, Metaphysik", in: ''Kant-Studien'', 31, 1926, p. 146–158 * "Vom Sinn des Lebens", in: ''Symposion. Philosophische Zeitschrift für Forschung und Aussprache'', Jg. 1, 1927, p. 331–354Reprinted in Vol. I/6 of the ''Moritz Schlick Gesamtausgabe'', p.99–128 * ''Fragen der Ethik''. Vienna: Verlag von Julius Springer 1930 * "Gibt es ein Materiales Apriori?", 1930 * * * " Unanswerable Questions?", 1935 * "Meaning and Verification", 1936 * ''Gesammelte Aufsätze 1926–1936''. Vienna: Gerold & Co. 1938 * ''Die Probleme der Philosophie in ihrem Zusammenhang''. Frankfurt: Suhrkamp Verlag 1986 * ''Moritz Schlick Gesamtausgabe''. Vienna/New York: Springer Verlag 2006. — Almost complete author copy of Vol
I/1I/2I/3I/5I/6

Notes

References

* Edmonds, David and John Eidinow. ''Wittgenstein's Poker.'' New York: HarperCollins, 2001. *Fynn Ole Engler, Mathias Iven. ''Moritz Schlick. Leben, Werk und Wirkung.'' Berlin: Parerga 2008. *Schlick, Moritz. Positivism and Realism. Originally appeared in ''Erkenntnis'' 111 (1932/33); translated by Peter Heath and reprinted in ''Moritz Schlick: Philosophical Papers'', Volume II (1925–1936) from Vienna Circle Collection, edited by Henk L. Mulder (Kluwer, 1979), pp. 259–284.

External links

*
Moritz Schlick Research Center
at Rostock University {{DEFAULTSORT:Schlick, Moritz 1882 births 1936 deaths Atheist philosophers Deaths by firearm in Austria German atheists German expatriates in Austria 20th-century German philosophers 20th-century German physicists Linguistic turn Logical positivism People murdered in Austria Philosophers of science Vienna Circle Writers from Berlin University of Rostock faculty German male writers 1936 murders in Austria