Food for Thought
“The feminine characteristics of a people are in direct ratio to its militarism. The urgent desire to take a subordinate position, to carry out orders, however harsh they are, requires little masculinity but a good deal of that psychological passion for humiliation which is satisfied by acquiescence in suffering hardship and the muzzling of personal activities. This masochistic trait is an essential element in national character.
“The ancient Spartans were a hen-pecked race, and for this reason they fought with a blind and grim ferocity against what would frequently have been to their advantage. In future wars the Americans will show, as a result of their psychological transformation under female tyranny, that they are not only undismayed by slaughter on a large scale, but have an unnatural eagerness for it.” – Fedor Vergin, Subconscious Europe, German translation by Raglan Somerset, 1932.
Female tyranny, eh? Vergin wrote this book during an era when everything was psychoanalyzed to an extreme. He thought that (what would now be termed) a meta-analysis would make for some interesting observations. Indeed, years and, in some instances, decades in advance he accurately predicted: the rise and consequences of Hitler, the US becoming a military superpower, trouble in the Middle East, Balkanization before the term was popular, and on and on. This English version of the book is extremely rare although the original German version can still be found. It was never published in the US. The publisher of the translation was in London and Toronto. Vergin’s analysis of the generalized bureaucratic mindset, for example, is riveting.
Getting a copy of this book is nearly impossible. On my bookshelf it sits right next to Oswald Spengler’s The Decline of the West and Jacques Ellul’s The Technological Society. All thought-provoking classics.
Nice. Now there’s hundreds of dvorak readers on ebay looking for the english translation of this book.
I’m guessing site admin is wanting to unload his copy at an unbelievable profit.
nice work.
(just kidding!)
Vergin has accurately described the origin of 90% of bar fights: Getting your face pounded in by a Bud Light bottle is preferable to returning home to female tyrrany.
A bit off topic. For anyone looking for English translations of European authors I suggest searching used/rare book dealers in the UK and Ireland. The internet makes this a breeze. American dealers tend to stock items more for collectables and investment.
Actually there is an Irish book dealer with one copy of this tome. And, NO, I’m not selling mine.
In future wars the Americans will show, as a result of their psychological transformation under female tyranny, that they are not only undismayed by slaughter on a large scale, but have an unnatural eagerness for it.
Wait, let me get this straight, this was written by a pre- World War II GERMAN??
Why yes, this is thought provoking. It provokes thoughts of the abject uselessness of all that big s–tpile of German philosophy that preceded and coincided with Hitler, Naziism, the Holocaust, and that most terrible war in the history of the known universe, brought to you by the Germans.
Actually Kevin, it makes some sense if you apply the quote you sight to the feminist movment and abortion.
Who among men is willing to stand up to an angry woman?
And how many lives have been lost to the cause of “Choice”?
If this is really about feminism, shouldn’t that “missle” be aimed somewhere else on the photo?
Jim
I don’t know about that. It seems the majority of women want the choice of what happens to their bodies while the leaders in the Anti-choice movement are mostly men who prefer to have others bend to their will.
You make a good point, too many clinic workers and Doctors have been brutally bombed and shot by those chanting about the sanctity of life.
I think you missed my point,Pat so I will be clearer:
my interpretation of the qoute was:
the “Female tyrannay” is the attempt by radical femminism to femmize the American Male (i.e. metro-sexual)
and being “undismayed by slaughter on a large scale”, is the lack of concern over the number of lives taken by abortions(i.e. the unborn children)
not to mention the “eagerness for it”
Jacques Ellul’s The Technological Society is a meaty read. And not that hard to find, I see copies in used book stores regularly.
C’mon, the book is old, it’s probably in the public domain by now, why don’t you scan it and post it as a txt or pdf on dvorak.org/books?
Just glancing at Jim W’s remark in passing — are there any reactionary religious freaks around using debate or discussion tactics other than premising a straw man to suit the conclusions they seek?
I realize that might require examining 1st or 2nd-hand source material instead of this year’s equivalent of Rush or Drudge; but, it might make some of their arguments more interesting than “God said it, I believe it, that’s that!”.
Jim
So are you among those men trying to tell women what they may do with their bodies?
Do you live by the mantra “keep ’em pregnant in the summer and barefoot in the winter”?
for those who cant see the forrest for the trees:
from Dvoraks orginal comment:
“Indeed, years and, in some instances, decades in advance he accurately predicted: the rise and consequences of Hitler, the US becoming a military superpower, trouble in the Middle East, Balkanization before the term was popular, and on and on
I was mearly providing an example of how the quote that Kevin pointed to could be interpreted as having come true as a preditiction from this mans writings.
IMO, The rise of militant femminism and their Holy cause of Abortion without restrictions fits.
do you see anthing else in modern America that would fit this “prediction” or was the writer a total crackpot?