The career of Siegfried Kracauer began with the study of architecture, leading to a doctorate in engineering in 1914. His professional path subsequently shifted from the drafting of buildings to the analysis of modernity, as he became a significant contributor to the cultural and social criticism of the twentieth century.
Early Career and Intellectual Formation
Born in Frankfurt in 1889, Kracauer pursued architectural studies between 1907 and 1913. He practiced in Osnabrück, Munich, and Berlin until 1920. During the final period of the First World War, he served as a philosophical mentor to Theodor W. Adorno. This period marked a transition toward journalism and social theory, culminating in his position at the Frankfurter Zeitung from 1920 to 1933.
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While serving as a film and literature editor, Kracauer examined the cultural landscape of Weimar Germany. His 1930 study, The Salaried Masses: Duty and Distraction in Weimar Germany, investigated the lifestyle of white-collar employees. He argued that this social class, divorced from tradition, sought refuge in commercial entertainment industries. This period also involved critical observation of photography, city layout, and tourism as reflections of capitalist society.
Migration and Film Theory
The rise of the Nazis forced Kracauer to flee Germany for Paris in 1933. By March 1941, he reached the United States. His research in New York City, supported by Guggenheim Fellowships between 1943 and 1945, led to his examination of cinema. In 1947, he published From Caligari to Hitler, which linked the psychology of Weimar cinema to the political trajectory of Germany. Later, he served as a research director at Columbia University.
Fast facts
- Born: 1889, Frankfurt
- Died: 1966, New York City
- Occupations: writer, architect, journalist, sociologist, film critic
- Primary Employer: Frankfurter Zeitung (1920-1933)
- Academic Affiliation: Columbia University (1952)
- Guggenheim Fellowships: 1943, 1944, 1945
- Notable Works: From Caligari to Hitler, The Salaried Masses
- Citizenships: Germany, France
Questions readers ask
What did Kracauer argue regarding cinema?
In his 1960 work, Theory of Film: The Redemption of Physical Reality, he argued that the primary function of cinema is the representation of realism.
What was the subject of his 1930 book The Salaried Masses?
The book analyzed the culture and lifestyle of lower-middle-class white-collar workers who turned to entertainment as a distraction from modern social instability.
Achievements
- Notable work: The Salaried Masses: Duty and Distraction in Weimar Germany
- Notable work: From Caligari to Hitler
- Held posts at Frankfurter Zeitung and Columbia University
