Parallele Leben: Politischer Aktivismus und akademische Karriere

Abstract

In this autobiographical essay, Josef Ehmer reflects on his academic career. As a starting point, Ehmer describes his family background as well as the socio-political milieu and the (political) influences of his upbringing and schooling in the context of Austrian contemporary history. Subsequently, the author recalls his years of study and describes the Institute for Economic and Social History in Vienna as a "social place." Shaped and supported by dedicated mentors, such as Michael Mitterauer, Ehmer reflects on his path into "science as a vocation" and its various stages, especially his professorships in Salzburg and Vienna. Additionally, this essay elaborates on how Ehmer developed his stable research focuses: the social history of the 18th to 20th centuries in a European comparative perspective, specifically the history of the family, workers and craftsmen, migrations, aging, and popu-lation history and historical demography.