Viktor Freiherr von Weizsäcker (21 April 1886, in Stuttgart – 9 January 1957, in

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

physician and

physiologist Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical ...

. He was the brother of

Ernst von Weizsäcker Ernst Heinrich Freiherr von Weizsäcker (25 May 1882 – 4 August 1951) was a German naval officer, diplomat and politician. He served as State Secretary at the Foreign Office of Nazi Germany from 1938 to 1943, and as its Ambassador to ...

, and uncle to Richard von Weizsäcker and

Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker Carl Friedrich Freiherr von Weizsäcker (; 28 June 1912 – 28 April 2007) was a German physicist and philosopher. He was the longest-living member of the team which performed nuclear research in Germany during the Second World War, under ...

. (For his family tree, see Weizsäcker.) He studied at

Tübingen Tübingen (, , Swabian: ''Dibenga'') is a traditional university city in central Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated south of the state capital, Stuttgart, and developed on both sides of the Neckar and Ammer rivers. about one in thre ...

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

Berlin Berlin is Capital of Germany, the capital and largest city of Germany, both by area and List of cities in Germany by population, by population. Its more than 3.85 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European U ...

, and Heidelberg, where he earned his medical degree in 1910. In 1920 he became head of the

neurological Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal c ...

department at

Ludolf von Krehl Albrecht Ludolf von Krehl (December 26, 1861 – May 26, 1937) was a German internist and physiologist who was a native of Leipzig. He was the son of Orientalist Christoph Krehl (1825–1901) He studied at the Universities of Heidelberg and ...

's clinic in Heidelberg. In 1941 he succeeded

Otfrid Foerster Otfrid Foerster (9 November 1873 – 15 June 1941) was a German neurologist and neurosurgeon, who made innovative contributions to neurology and neurosurgery, such as rhizotomy for the treatment of spasticity, anterolateral cordotomy for pain, t ...

as professor of neurology in Breslau, and in 1945 returned to Heidelberg as a professor of

clinical medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care prac ...

. Weizsäcker is known for his pioneer work in

psychosomatic A somatic symptom disorder, formerly known as a somatoform disorder,(2013) dsm5.org. Retrieved April 8, 2014. is any mental disorder that manifests as physical symptoms that suggest illness or injury, but cannot be explained fully by a general ...

medicine, and for his theories regarding

medical anthropology Medical anthropology studies "human health and disease, health care systems, and biocultural adaptation". It views humans from multidimensional and ecological perspectives. It is one of the most highly developed areas of anthropology and applied ...

. He is remembered for his concept of ''Gestaltkreis'', an elaboration of

Gestalt psychology Gestalt-psychology, gestaltism, or configurationism is a school of psychology that emerged in the early twentieth century in Austria and Germany as a theory of perception that was a rejection of basic principles of Wilhelm Wundt's and Edward ...

, in which he explains that biological events are not fixed responses, but are dependent upon previous experience and are constantly being repatterned through experience. Via Gestalt, Weizsäcker attempted to represent the unit of perception and movement theoretically. In the late 1920s Weizsäcker was co-editor of ''Die Kreatur'' with philosopher

Martin Buber Martin Buber ( he, מרטין בובר; german: Martin Buber; yi, מארטין בובער; February 8, 1878 – June 13, 1965) was an Austrian Jewish and Israeli philosopher best known for his philosophy of dialogue, a form of existentialism ...

(1878-1965) and

theologian Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

Joseph Wittig (1879-1949). In this journal, Weizsäcker advances his ideas concerning medical anthropology. In 1956 he published ''Pathosophie'', where he tries to create a philosophical understanding of man through his drives, conflicts, and illnesses.

Published works

* "Der Gestaltkreis, Theorie der Einheit von Wahrnehmen und Bewegen", 1940. * "Gestalt und Zeit : nach einem am 17. 1. 1942 gehaltenen Vortrage", 1942. * "Begegnungen und Entscheidungen", 1949. * "Menschenführung : nach ihren biologischen und metaphysischen Grundlagen betrachtet", 1955. * "Am Anfang schuf Gott Himmel und Erde : Grundfragen der Naturphilosophie", 1954. * "Natur und Geist; Errinnerungen eines Arztes", 1954. * "Pathosophie", 1955. ** Books about Viktor von Weizsäcker: * "Viktor von Weizsäcker (1886-1957) : Materialien zu Leben und Werk" : (Dokumentationsband zur Ausstellung; Heidelberg, 28. April-6. Mai 1986) Berlin u.a : Springer, 1986. * "Viktor von Weizsäckers Rezeption der Psychoanalyse" by Thomas Reuster; Stuttgart-Bad Cannstatt : Frommann-Holzboog, 1990. * "Der Arztphilosoph Viktor von Weizsäcker : Leben und Werk im Überblick" by Udo Benzenhöfer Göttingen : Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2007.OCLC
Der Arztphilosoph Viktor von Weizsäcker * Alle origini dell'antropologia medica. Il pensiero di Viktor von Weizsäcker, by Oreste Tolone: Carocci, Roma 2016.

References

* ''This article is based on a translation of an equivalent article at the

German Wikipedia The German Wikipedia (german: Deutschsprachige Wikipedia) is the German-language edition of Wikipedia, a free and publicly editable online encyclopedia. Founded on March 16, 2001, it is the second-oldest Wikipedia (after the English Wikipedia) ...

''. {{DEFAULTSORT:Weizsacker, Viktor von German neurologists Viktor von University of Tübingen alumni Heidelberg University alumni 1886 births 1957 deaths German physiologists Academic staff of the University of Breslau Academic staff of Heidelberg University