author
Theodor Lessing
1872–1933
A sharp, fearless German-Jewish thinker, he wrote against nationalism, mass politics, and the myths people tell themselves about history. His work still stands out for its moral urgency and its willingness to confront painful questions.
1 Audiobook
Haarmann. Die Geschichte eines Werwolfs
by Theodor Lessing
About the author
Born in Hanover in 1872, Theodor Lessing was a German philosopher, writer, and public intellectual whose work ranged across history, psychology, politics, and culture. He is especially remembered for his criticism of political nationalism and for Der jüdische Selbsthaß (Jewish Self-Hatred), published in 1930, a controversial and influential book that examined the pressures of antisemitism and assimilation.
Lessing wrote in a lively, argumentative style and often took unpopular positions in public life. He became known as a fierce critic of reactionary politics in the Weimar era, including his opposition to Paul von Hindenburg. Because he was both Jewish and outspoken, he faced sustained hostility long before the Nazi seizure of power.
After leaving Germany in 1933, he took refuge in Marienbad in Czechoslovakia. That same year, he was assassinated there, making him one of the early intellectual victims of Nazism. Today he is remembered as a courageous, unsettling voice who warned about political violence and the dangers of collective self-deception.