“施潘事件”与德国的学术自由

"The Fall Spahn" and Academic Freedom in Germany

"施潘事件"是20世纪初德国高等教育界的重大事件。由于年轻的天主教徒施潘被以一种违反德国大学传统的方式任命为斯特拉斯堡大学教授,德国学界、政界、宗教界之间展开了激烈的争论,最终演变为一场"学术界的文化斗争"。这场争论的直接焦点是:为了国家的利益,政府是否应当干预大学的内部事务,从而阻碍学术自由?更深层次的冲突在于,学术自由究竟是大学维护私利的工具,还是整体社会价值的重要组成部分?"施潘事件"的深刻意义在于深刻地预示了现代社会中大学与国家关系的发展方向以及在这个过程中不可避免地出现的政府与大学之间、政治与学术之间的价值、利益和文化的多重冲突。

＂The Fall Spahn＂ was an event of great significance in the history of German education, which was a consequence of the lasting struggle over the control of university between German Empire and German universities themselves. Eventually, the fall Spahn became the catalyst for a nationwide debate around the issue of academic freedom, and German intellectuals directed their criticisms at Ahhoff, who was then in charge of German education, together with the whole bureaucratic institution under his supervision. The different positions the bureaucrats and intellectuals took in ＂The Fall Spahn＂ and university-related issues, as well as various pertaining opinions, were indicative of the general condition of German universities and the society as a whole. Furthermore, it also hinted at the underlying dangers inherent in the tradition of the freedom of university. In this sense, the event was not only a necessary phrase in the process of educational secularization, but also an evidence of educational bureaucratization within the context of modernization.