About Jürgen

Jürgen Martschukat is Professor of North American History at the University of Erfurt and Spokesperson for the Research Unit on Voluntariness. His main research interests lie in gender history, history of violence, history of the body, and political history. Key publications include American Fatherhood. A History (New York University Press, 2019) and The Age of Fitness (Polity, 2021).

Research Field

North American History

Affiliation

University of Erfurt

Department of History

Project 1

2020-2024

Voluntariness as Political Practice

Project 2

2024-2027

Voluntariness, Self-Care and Health in the US around 1865

portrait juergen martschukat

Jürgen Martschukat

Principal Investigator (North American History)
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Related Content

“Treppenhaus-Lecture” by Jürgen Martschukat in Erfurt

Under the heading “Ambivalences of Voluntariness”, Jürgen Martschukat, spokesperson of the DFG Research Unit Voluntariness, will give a brief overview of the research of our group on Tuesday, May 13, 2025, from 12:00 to 12:30 in the foyer of the research building “Weltbeziehungen” in Erfurt, as part of the series “Treppenhaus Lectures”. Feel free to drop by!

Special Issue on Voluntariness at Rethinking History

Members of our research group have compiled a special issue for the journal Rethinking History on the topic of “The Politics of Voluntariness in Modern History.” The issue is edited by Jürgen Martschukat and Alexandra Oeser and all pieces are available for download as open access articles on the journal’s website. Get the links right here.

The Lockean Subject

By Jürgen Martschukat

Since the seventeenth century, the idea of the human being as a self-owning, autonomous, voluntarily acting agent has become deeply embedded in liberal political thought. In the neoliberal age of the last fifty years or so, this notion has shaped political and everyday action more than ever before, becoming even more profoundly entrenched in the concept of ideal subjecthood. However, this so-called Lockean subject has come in for criticism…

Joys and Challenges of Researching Voluntariness II

By Mitchell Dean and Jürgen Martschukat

In Summer 2023, Australian sociologist and Foucault expert Mitchell Dean joined our research unit as Mercator Fellow. Since then, he and our group stayed in contact and he also participates in a workshop with former Mercator Fellow Alexandra Oeser in Paris-Nanterre this month. In the meantime, he and Jürgen Martschukat once more talked about joys and challenges of researching voluntariness in our second interview with visiting scholars in Erfurt.

We are Hiring…Join our Team!

A position as research assistant within the Research Unit on “Voluntariness” is available at the University of Erfurt. Historians specializing in the field of North American History may apply by May 4, 2024, at the latest.

Joys and Challenges of Researching Voluntariness I

By Alexandra Oeser and Jürgen Martschukat

In Summer 2022, sociologist and historian from the Université Paris-Nanterre, Alexandra Oeser, joined our research unit as Mercator Fellow. Since then, a rather long-term exchange has been established. She and Jürgen Martschukat recently took the time to reflect upon the opportunities and challenges of interdisciplinary and international cooperation.

Workshop “Freiheit – Unfreiheit – Freiwilligkeit” in Berlin

On October 10, 2023, Jürgen Martschukat and Florian Wagner, PIs in our subprojects on “Voluntariness as Political Practice” and “Voluntariness and Repatriation”, are going to participate in a workshop on “Freiheit – Unfreiheit – Freiwilligkeit” at the Freie Universität Berlin.

Voluntariness On The Road – June 21 & 22

In June 2022, the subproject “Voluntariness as Political Practice” welcomes distinguished American scholars in Erfurt and beyond. Deirdre Cooper Owens (University of Nebraska-Lincoln) and Van Gosse (Franklin & Marshall College), guests of next week’s workshop, will visit also Freiburg, Heidelberg and Bonn.

Voluntariness Up For Debate – Workshop Dis-Cover Fellow Citizens

In June 2022, our team of the subproject “Voluntariness as Political Practice” will discuss key issues of their research field at the workshop „Dis-Cover Fellow Citizens: Voluntary Civic Engagement in the Early Republic and Antebellum America“. Find more info here…

syringe, mask and vaccine

Voluntariness, COVID 19, and a Vaccine Mandate

By Jürgen Martschukat

Those satisfied with a cursory glance or who like to think in clear-cut categories are quick to view voluntariness as the core political principle of a society that privileges the autonomy of the free individual, a …

Of Voluntary Submission to the Power of Fitness

By Jürgen Martschukat

For weeks, I have been suffering from a leg injury. Nothing serious, but it keeps me from cycling, at least as much as I would like to. I miss my exercise, feel slightly off-balance, and fear getting out of shape. Yet…

Other Contributors

Anne Greule

Affiliated Member Research Unit since 2023

Pia Herzan

Member Research Unit from 2020 to 2024