Soma Morgenstern
Encyclopedia
Soma Morgenstern was a Jewish-Austria
n writer
and journalist
.
, and so religion played a significant role in Soma's childhood.
Morgenstern's upbringing was not only religious but also multilingual. In his childhood memories Ukrainian
was his first language, though Yiddish became his native tongue. He also learned ancient Hebrew
in order to understand religious texts, and sometimes went to Polish, sometimes Ukrainian village schools, in which he was also taught German. German would later be the language in which he wrote, in large part because his father held the language in high esteem.
He did not however take after his father in all things; after he completed his basic education he went to the grammar school in Tarnopol, a regional cultural centre at the time. During this period he became an atheist, but later rediscovered his religion, which strongly influenced his work:
"But I stood before a lectern, on which a neglected prayer-book lay. [...] My eyes fell onto a verse which I knew well, but only now recognised as a great truth. [...] He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? He that formed the eye, shall he not see? [Psalm 94.9, KJV] What a verse! What a question! I had learned from the Darwinists how an organ for seeing can come into existence. [...] But, as I suddenly asked myself, who invented seeing? Who had put it into words as the psalmist did?! Who had questioned so deeply and written so highly?! I felt my atheism faltering." (From In another time. Youth in East Galicia, his incomplete autobiography)
After he left grammar school Morgenstern went to Vienna
to study law in 1912, where his studies were interrupted by his military service during the First World War, meaning he only graduated in 1921. Afterwards he worked as, among others, as the Vienna correspondent for the Frankfurter Zeitung
and moved in the intellectual circles of Vienna, and was befriended by, for example, the composer Alban Berg
and the authors Joseph Roth
and Robert Musil
.
In March 1938 he fled Vienna via France (where he was repeatedly detained as a "foreign enemy") to New York in 1941, where he lived until his death in 1976. His son Dan Morgenstern
is a well-known jazz
historian, critic, lecturer and archivist at Rutgers University.
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
and journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
.
Biography
Soma (real name Salomo) Morgenstern spent his childhood in various villages in Galicia. His father worked as a bailiff, but was also a Jewish scholar and fulfilled the functions of a prayer leader in the area where the Morgensterns lived at that time. The Morgenstern family were adherents of Hasidic JudaismHasidic Judaism
Hasidic Judaism or Hasidism, from the Hebrew —Ḥasidut in Sephardi, Chasidus in Ashkenazi, meaning "piety" , is a branch of Orthodox Judaism that promotes spirituality and joy through the popularisation and internalisation of Jewish mysticism as the fundamental aspects of the Jewish faith...
, and so religion played a significant role in Soma's childhood.
Morgenstern's upbringing was not only religious but also multilingual. In his childhood memories Ukrainian
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
was his first language, though Yiddish became his native tongue. He also learned ancient Hebrew
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
in order to understand religious texts, and sometimes went to Polish, sometimes Ukrainian village schools, in which he was also taught German. German would later be the language in which he wrote, in large part because his father held the language in high esteem.
He did not however take after his father in all things; after he completed his basic education he went to the grammar school in Tarnopol, a regional cultural centre at the time. During this period he became an atheist, but later rediscovered his religion, which strongly influenced his work:
"But I stood before a lectern, on which a neglected prayer-book lay. [...] My eyes fell onto a verse which I knew well, but only now recognised as a great truth. [...] He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? He that formed the eye, shall he not see? [Psalm 94.9, KJV] What a verse! What a question! I had learned from the Darwinists how an organ for seeing can come into existence. [...] But, as I suddenly asked myself, who invented seeing? Who had put it into words as the psalmist did?! Who had questioned so deeply and written so highly?! I felt my atheism faltering." (From In another time. Youth in East Galicia, his incomplete autobiography)
After he left grammar school Morgenstern went to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
to study law in 1912, where his studies were interrupted by his military service during the First World War, meaning he only graduated in 1921. Afterwards he worked as, among others, as the Vienna correspondent for the Frankfurter Zeitung
Frankfurter Zeitung
The Frankfurter Zeitung was a German language newspaper that appeared from 1856 to 1943. It emerged from a market letter that was published in Frankfurt...
and moved in the intellectual circles of Vienna, and was befriended by, for example, the composer Alban Berg
Alban Berg
Alban Maria Johannes Berg was an Austrian composer. He was a member of the Second Viennese School with Arnold Schoenberg and Anton Webern, and produced compositions that combined Mahlerian Romanticism with a personal adaptation of Schoenberg's twelve-tone technique.-Early life:Berg was born in...
and the authors Joseph Roth
Joseph Roth
Joseph Roth, born Moses Joseph Roth , was an Austrian journalist and novelist, best known for his family saga Radetzky March about the decline and fall of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and for his novel of Jewish life, Job as well as the seminal essay 'Juden auf Wanderschaft' translated in...
and Robert Musil
Robert Musil
Robert Musil was an Austrian writer. His unfinished long novel The Man Without Qualities is generally considered to be one of the most important modernist novels...
.
In March 1938 he fled Vienna via France (where he was repeatedly detained as a "foreign enemy") to New York in 1941, where he lived until his death in 1976. His son Dan Morgenstern
Dan Morgenstern
Dan Morgenstern is a jazz critic and librarian.Morgenstern moved to the United States in 1947, and attended Brandeis University from 1953-1956. He wrote for jazz publication Jazz Journal from 1958–1961, and following this edited several jazz magazines: Metronome in 1961, Jazz from 1962–1963, and...
is a well-known jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
historian, critic, lecturer and archivist at Rutgers University.