Gedichte aus Luhmanns Welt

Poesie als Passion

Friedrich Rudolf Hohl (1916–1979) was the closest friend of sociologist Niklas Luhmann. In addition to their shared studies in law, Hohl and Luhmann were united by a love of philosophy and art. Intellectual exchange was at the heart of their friendship.

After chronic pain forced Hohl to give up his position as a lecturer in law in the 1960s, he devoted himself increasingly to writing poetry. Luhmann encouraged him in this pursuit and suggested publishing his poems, but Hohl never acted on the idea.

Hohl’s literary estate contains approximately 470 handwritten poems, from which this volume presents a selection published here for the first time. The collection opens with an introductory essay by Clemens Luhmann, recounting the friendship between his father and Friedrich Rudolf Hohl and their shared intellectual interests. Niklas Luhmann described his friend’s work as Denkgedichte — poems of thought. A central point of connection between the two friends was Luhmann’s systems theory, whose fundamental ideas Hohl sought to explore and express through poetic language.