Max Teichmann
Encyclopedia
Max Edwin Teichmann was an Australian academic and political commentator. A former politics lecturer at Monash University
, Teichmann was known for his independent views and trenchant criticisms of both the Left
and the Right
.
to a German
-born father, also Max, and a Adelaide
-born mother, Kathleen, Teichmann grew up in the working-class suburb of Carlton
during the Great Depression
. After leaving school, he worked as a junior journalist, then in 1942 joined the Australian army and saw action in Papua New Guinea
.
where he embarked on an academic career. He won a scholarship to Balliol College, Oxford
, United Kingdom
where he was taught by Isaiah Berlin
, Max Beloff and John Plamenatz
. While in the United Kingdom, Teichmann became involved in left-wing politics, joining Britain's Labour Party
and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
movement in Australia and counted among his friends leading Australian Labor Party
identities such as Jim Cairns
and Bill Hayden
.
Teichmann eventually did adopt more conservative views and he become a fierce critic of the Left in Australia. Writing in the Australian Financial Review on 19 July 1999, Christopher Pearson
listed Teichmann as one of several contemporary Australian political commentators who had commenced on the Left but had become conservatives later on in their careers. Pearson asserted that "Teichmann's position evolved primarily in response to the Left". So much so that his "critique of parasitism in the institutional Left, old and new, made him a heretical presence at Monash".
, News Weekly
and National Observer
up until his death in November 2008.
Monash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....
, Teichmann was known for his independent views and trenchant criticisms of both the Left
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
and the Right
Right-wing politics
In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
.
Early years
Born in MelbourneMelbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
to a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
-born father, also Max, and a Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
-born mother, Kathleen, Teichmann grew up in the working-class suburb of Carlton
Carlton, Victoria
Carlton is an inner city suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km north from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Melbourne...
during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. After leaving school, he worked as a junior journalist, then in 1942 joined the Australian army and saw action in Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
.
Education
After the war, as an ex-serviceman, he enrolled in the University of MelbourneUniversity of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
where he embarked on an academic career. He won a scholarship to Balliol College, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
where he was taught by Isaiah Berlin
Isaiah Berlin
Sir Isaiah Berlin OM, FBA was a British social and political theorist, philosopher and historian of ideas of Russian-Jewish origin, regarded as one of the leading thinkers of the twentieth century and a dominant liberal scholar of his generation...
, Max Beloff and John Plamenatz
John Plamenatz
John Petrov Plamenatz was a Montenegrin political philosopher, who spent most of his academic life at the University of Oxford. He became a Fellow of All Souls College, and succeeded Isaiah Berlin as Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory at Oxford...
. While in the United Kingdom, Teichmann became involved in left-wing politics, joining Britain's Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
Political commentary
In 1964, he returned to Australia and took up a post in the department of politics at Monash University. He became active in the anti-Vietnam WarVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
movement in Australia and counted among his friends leading Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
identities such as Jim Cairns
Jim Cairns
James Ford "J. F." Cairns , Australian politician, was prominent in the Labor movement through the 1960s and 1970s, and was briefly Deputy Prime Minister in the Whitlam government...
and Bill Hayden
Bill Hayden
William George "Bill" Hayden AC was the 21st Governor-General of Australia. Prior to this, he represented the Australian Labor Party in parliament; he was a minister in the government of Gough Whitlam, and later became Leader of the Opposition, narrowly losing the 1980 federal election to the...
.
Teichmann eventually did adopt more conservative views and he become a fierce critic of the Left in Australia. Writing in the Australian Financial Review on 19 July 1999, Christopher Pearson
Christopher Pearson
Christopher Pearson is an Australian journalist who writes for The Australian.He comes from Adelaide and received a Bachelor of Arts with Honours from Flinders University as well as a Graduate Diploma in Education from the University of Adelaide...
listed Teichmann as one of several contemporary Australian political commentators who had commenced on the Left but had become conservatives later on in their careers. Pearson asserted that "Teichmann's position evolved primarily in response to the Left". So much so that his "critique of parasitism in the institutional Left, old and new, made him a heretical presence at Monash".
Columnist
Teichmann retired from Monash in 1989. He went on to work as a regular columnist with The Adelaide Review from the mid-1990s until 2002. He also regularly wrote articles for QuadrantQuadrant (magazine)
Quadrant is an Australian literary and cultural journal. The magazine takes a conservative position on political and social issues, describing itself as sceptical of 'unthinking Leftism, or political correctness, and its "smelly little orthodoxies"'. Quadrant reviews literature, as well as...
, News Weekly
News Weekly
News Weekly is an Australian current affairs magazine, published by the National Civic Council. It was founded by B. A. Santamaria in 1941 under the name Freedom. News Weekly provides analysis of current cultural, social, political and economic trends in the Australia. It has a focus on ethics.The...
and National Observer
National Observer (Australia)
The National Observer is a quarterly current-affairs and politics magazine in Australia...
up until his death in November 2008.
External links
- "Intellect of the left frightened the right" Obituary in The Age
- "He chose the Left as his target" Obituary in The Australian
- "Writer, academic and raconteur fondly remembered" Obituary in News Weekly