Judgment and Concept (In the struggle with Weimar, Geneva, Versailles 1923-1939)

Author: (German) Schmitt, translated by Zhu Yanbing
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-08-01
Features: This book is the fourth volume of the Collected Works of Schmitt. Like Marx, Schmitt was not only a scholar who tackled major political issues of real history but also an expert in practical political commentary. Judgment and Concept covers a very broad range, including public law (constitutional and international law), the history of political thought, international and domestic politics. Schmitt's political struggles began with the Treaty of Versailles and the Weimar Constitution, the two major events. As the title of Judgment and Concept suggests, Schmitt's political commentary is rooted in Germany's political situation as a newly emerging nation-state—internationally, Germany was constrained by unequal international treaties such as the Treaty of Versailles and the Geneva Protocol, while domestically, it faced a crisis of national division due to the flaws in the design of the Weimar constitutional system. Judgment and Concept, which Schmitt compiled himself during his lifetime, covers a much broader scope, including public law (constitutional and international law), the history of political thought, international and domestic politics. Schmitt's political commentary begins with the Treaty of Versailles and the Weimar Constitution, rooted in Germany's modern situation as a newly emerging nation-state. From the "German Question" as a modernity issue, he conducted intellectual political struggles, addressing the chaos in domestic political thought, particularly the oppression of Germany by imperialism.