Culture and Inflation in Weimar Germany

Weimar and Now: German Cultural Criticism #26

by Bernd Widdig

For many Germans the hyperinflation of 1922 to 1923 was one of the most decisive experiences of the twentieth century. In his original and authoritative study, Bernd Widdig investigates the effects of that inflation on German culture during the Weimar Republic. He argues that inflation, with its dynamics of massification, devaluation, and the rapid circulation of money, is an integral part of modern culture and intensifies and condenses the experience of modernity in a traumatic way.

Genres: History, Economics, Germany

290 pages, Hardcover

First published February 19, 2001

Reviews

[Peter Blok · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting and original book. Many elements of the period Wächter describes (Germany after WW I) are relevant for the actual period in many western countries. The inflation, fortunately, is not so high now but it is rising, especially in the US, but we see many peoples who lost their faith in government, in facts, in science, in the truth, in other words in basic institutions. The lack of trust is a striking parallel with modern times not as a consequence of the hyper inflation that took place in Germany but as a consequence of the growing inequality.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book provides a very interesting perspective on the Weimar inflation by examining it through a cultural lens rather than a traditional political or economic one. It points out inherent social elements that we associate with money without giving a second thought, such as the how money can be a communication medium, how our spending choices define who we are, and how our decision to spend or save reflect expectations about the future. During a time when the long-held trust in the value of money is disappearing right before your eyes, there comes with it a devaluation of trust and morales that was associated with money which had been the backbone to our societal fabric. It's alarming how we are seeing a revival of scapegoating certain groups at a time of moral chaos and parallels between Weimar Germany and the present. Antisemitism is definitely the most prominent one that comes to mind.

[Tobias · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unique way of thinking about how economic trauma shapes broader social and cultural discourse. I don't think I've ever read anything like it. The main problem with the book is less about content and more about structure: the chapters read more as loosely connected essays than as coherent narrative. Still, this is the kind of book I would like to write one day.