Magnus Hirschfeld : a portrait of a pioneer in sexology
Charlotte Wolff (Author)
"Magnus Hirschfeld was a leading member of a group of physicians who, during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, enlarged our knowledge of the psycho-sexual nature of man. In 1897 he founded, with the help of three of his followers, the Scientific-Humanitarian Committee, of which he became the president. It was the first social agency which catered for homosexuals and other sexual variants. As a young doctor Magnus Hirschfeld's concern for social welfare also led him to investigate the effects of alcoholism upon the individual and society. In 1916 he wrote the blueprint for a national health service; he was also a founder and the first president of the World League for Sexual Reform. In 1919 Hirschfeld founded the Institute for Sexual Science in Berlin, the first of its kind in the world. Apart from research into human sexuality in all its forms, the Institute provided psychological and medical therapy, as well as marriage guidance. Magnus Hirschfeld was internationally famous, known by scientists and ordinary people all over the world. However, his work was suppressed by Hitler's regime, and only during the 1970s was his reputation as a formidable savant and sexual reformer reestablished. In this important biography, Dr Charlotte Wolff assembles a complete picture of Hirschfeld's personality, and shows how his accomplishments as well as his mistakes originated from his paradoxical character" -- Front dust jacket
Print Book, English, 1986
Quartet Books, London, 1986