uniquenature of their state of consciousness. In other words,asocialism that
appealsto the emotions; the sense of camaraderie;the concept of honor; the
young’ssense of justice; and the ideals of freedom, equality, and fraternitycapa-
ble since ancient times of enflaming mainlythe youthfulsoul.”¹⁷Oskar Drees,a
well-known sport functionary,echoedKorn’sheartfeltsentiments when he called
for more coordinatedefforts“to overcome those feelings of inferiority anchored
in the soul of proletarianyouth and build up their self-esteem and self-confi-
dence.”¹⁸
Beyond the shared belief in the maingoals of socialist pedagogy, consider-
able disagreements existed concerning the role of individual personality in def-
initionsofclass and its implications for the making of proletarian identifica-
tions. Convinced of theradicalizing effects of suffering,the left-radical activist
OttoRühledescribed the politicalawakening of (a male) proletarianyouth as
“aprocess by which the fate of his class is repeated andredefined through
him. The experienceofhumiliationawakens strong impulses of opposition
and resistancedeepwithin him. Hardship and sorroware transformed into in-
sight and action.”¹⁹However,these negative experiencesrarelyproved sufficient
to startamovement or buildaparty.Itwas onlyradical changes in the institu-
tions of learning such as the introduction of the so-calledEinheitsschule(com-
prehensive school) that could provide the appropriate structure for the develop-
ment of anew socialist morality. “Freedom, independence, truthfulness,
solidarity–these are the foundations and pillars of the educationto social-
ism,”²⁰the prolificRühle concluded.Addingamorecontroversialpublicheath
perspective on the psychologyand pathologyofclass society,Austrian educator
OttoFelix Kanitz observed that the children of the workingclasswerenot only
doublyoppressed by the patriarchal family and the class system but also born
with diminished mental and physical faculties due to their prenatal exposure
to alcohol; these disadvantages, he insisted, continued in their often futile
dailystruggles against hunger,poverty,and criminality.Disproving anyroman-
ticized views about an innate sense of community and solidarity among the
workingclass, these dire circumstances, accordingtoKanitz, often gave rise to
Karl Korn,Die Arbeiterjugendbewegung,3vols.(Berlin: Arbeiterjugend-Verlag,1923),3:
379 – 80.
Oskar Drees,quoted in JörgWetterich,Bewegungskultur und Körpererziehung in der sozialis-
tischen Jugendarbeit von 1893 bis 1933.Lebensstile undBewegungskonzepte im Schnittpunktvon
Arbeitersportbewegung undJugendbewegung(Münster: Lit,1993),278.
OttoRühle,Das proletarische Kind.Eine Monographie(Munich: Albert Langen, 1922),372.
OttoRühle,ErziehungzumSozialismus. EinManifest(Berlin:VerlagGesellschaft und Erzie-
hung, 1919),22.
278 Chapter 15