Hans Kelsen Werke

The sixth volume of Kelsen's Complete Works features writings from 1920-21, the years which saw Kelsen become the rising star among Vienna's jurists and him ascend to the pinnacle of his career. At this time in Austria, Kelsen's influence and reputation could hardly be equaled and he served as Federal Chancellor Karl Renner's constitutional advisor, sat as a member of the Constitutional Court and held the position of Law Faculty Dean at Vienna University. But despite the burden of the then forty-year-old's manifold duties and offices, Kelsen was nevertheless an extraordinarily productive writer, the scope of whose works is reflected in this volume. Along with the first edition of »The Essence and Value of Democracy«, pieces on the process of creating Austria's permanent constitution, 1920's Federal Constitutional Law, inter- and pluridisciplinary approaches to the key concept of the state and the theory of democracy can also be found. Another article describes the possible integration of democratic elements within fields of administration and newspaper »op-eds« (opposite-the-editorial-page articles) on short-term political issues, such as the challenges then facing Austria's universities, provided Kelsen's pen with further work and topical material. His continuing discourse on Marxism resulted in the monograph »Socialism and the State. A Study of Marxist Theory«, a writing which has likewise secured its place in this collection.