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Georg Mühlberg's Renommierstrummel (around 1900): fraternity students with fresh throws on a walk, probably the morning after a day of training
The First Wound , illustration for Mark Twain's A Tramp Abroad , 1878/1880

A scar is a student in a scale thereof supported cord injury as well as any resulting scar . Until the dissolution of the fraternities in the era of National Socialism a scar in was face often than the typical sign of recognition of a German academic . Visible smashes are rare today and the exception even for members of strong connections.

etymology

Schmiss or Schmiß (from throwing ) referred to a blow or blow in the 17th century . In the 19th century, this developed into today's meaning in student language as a wound or scar created in a scale. Colloquially, a scar on the face from another injury is also often referred to as a smear.

history

Late 18th and early 19th centuries

Timeline of student fencing weapons in Germany
Tübingen scale length, 1831

The smack in the face, which has long been typical of students and academics, has its origins in the late 18th century, when student duels gradually changed from shock to less dangerous slash fencing , and with the bat, the student fencing weapon still used today was developed .

Around 1800, slash fencing and shock fencing were widespread in different regions at German universities. Because of the less visible throws, push marks are said to have been particularly popular with theology students at the time, despite the higher mortality .

Until the advent of antiseptic wound care, it was customary for a long time to end a duel with the first injury, which is why the number of tears was initially low and conspicuous tears were relatively rare.

This fencing up to the first throw is described, among other things, in the student song Student Life, written in 1822 . There, with the - received or given - throw the flourish , i.e. the insult that triggered the scale, is "forgotten":

Want to contract
someone touch me
Immediately he will be challenged:
"You're a stupid boy!"
And with a quick leap
the scale goes in the paukantenwichs.
Schlepfuchs must have the weapons
get to the playground,
Fourths whistle, thirds buzz happily.
Has been a blow
the flourish is forgotten
from the kreuzfidelen studio.

From the middle of the 19th century to the time of National Socialism

Christian Wilhelm Allers : When mending , 1902
Christian Wilhelm Allers: Three stages of convalescence after a scale length , 1902

Around 1850, the censorship finally replaced the duel with the bat. With the invention of the Paukbrille in 1857 and the subsequent spread, serious injuries and deaths in the case of scales became increasingly rare. The number of duels increased, and with it the number of throws. To get a kick was not the goal of the scale length, but just a common side effect.

Already since the 1830s there were non-beating student associations, especially Catholic ones , who rejected the fencing of scales precisely because of the risk of injury.

Development to the identification mark

In the second half of the 19th century, the Schmiss became the hallmark of Central European academics and remained so until the 1930s. This sign was worn with pride , as it symbolized the prevailing ideal of an energetic, intrepid man who was not afraid of threatening situations. Inscribed irreversibly on the face, marks were a clear and visible sign for society and served as a guarantee of the character of their wearer.

Many young men emulated this ideal in excess, so that in the German Empire at the latest, the colored corporal equipped with Schmiss became the model of the student body. It is estimated that in the German Empire in the years before the First World War, around 12,000 classification miners were fought each year. Up until the 1930s, four to five lengths per semester were quite the rule; every active member of a connecting connection was almost automatically on the scale on Saturdays, if he was medically able to do so. With advances in medicine and the advent of antiseptic wound care, the risk of infections decreased drastically, which also made the scales bloody, as they no longer had to be ended with the first throw.

In addition to finding adventure and the thrill was also an "implied sexual connotation" of Schmisses a factor that the tradition favored the scale, because the scar a "major sexual attraction " in women exercised and so often "the beginning of sexual activity with the opposite sex ”. The British author Jerome K. Jerome wrote about the importance of the throw in Germany in his humorous story Drei Männer auf Bummelfahrt , published in 1900 :

"It is a proven fact that the German maiden is carried away by a face that has been cut and torn until it looks as if it has been put together from different materials that never went together."

In addition, the Schmiss developed in the German Empire as a “scarred calling card” everywhere and became an entrance ticket to higher society . The Schmiss identified its wearer as a member of the group of those capable of satisfaction , regardless of whether he was a member of the high nobility , reserve officer or a provincial academic.

Manipulations

Especially from the imperial era, there are reports from students who shied away from the scale length, but still did not want to do without the academic status symbol . Doctors reported that they had been asked by students to surgically teach them throws so that they would not attract negative attention in academic circles. In 1926, the case of an impostor was known who inflicted smack on himself in order to be able to appear as a fraternity student.

Allegedly there were also methods to turn a received smaller wound into "proud battle scars", e.g. B. by rubbing with salt or putting in horsehair , so that the healing process worsened and the scarring was increased. Even Mark Twain reported in his description of the scale of rumors that some of their scars tore again and then with red wine einrieben. In those days, however, the laying in of horsehair actually served as drainage and therefore had medical reasons. Rubbing in salt or red wine should be referred to as legends. On the other hand, the so-called “throwing pull”, in which the healing of harmless facial marks was hindered by pulling the wound apart , may have been more common. Throwing in the air was generally frowned upon and was strictly forbidden for many connections.

After a scale length: timpani with several throws to be supplied (1908)
Members of a Heidelberg Jewish Association with Schmissen provided for (1906)

reception

The smack was ubiquitous in contemporary publications , both serious and satirical . Political and humorous caricatures have also long been indispensable for identifying (fraternity) students. In political caricatures of the 1920s and 1930s, the Schmiss was used as a stereotypical attribute for reactionary ideas, often in combination with a monocle .

  • The smack in caricatures

  • Natural history. Homo studens (1845). Comparison of the boy and the obscurant .

  • Zukunftsmusik (1903) "Damn dashing woman! .. She studied law and had ten lengths!"

  • Rudolf Wilke : Nature Play ( 1908). Mockery of the indolence: “Just look at the student! A face like that belongs in your pants. "

In Heinrich Mann's satirical novel The Subject , the smack is associated with negative characteristics. Diederich Heßling, the main character, becomes a member of a striking student union and from then on draws his self-esteem from the collective, with his Schmisse being a visible sign of his affiliation with it:

“Diederich was not guided by pride or self-love: only his high concept of the corporation's honor. He himself was only human, so nothing; every right, all his prestige, came from her. [...] He still had to make room for a lieutenant [...]; but at least he could communicate with a tram conductor without fear, without the risk of being snapped at by him. His manhood stood out on his face with throws that split his chin, cracked his cheeks and chopped into his short-shaven skull, threateningly written on his face - and what a satisfaction to be able to prove it to everyone every day and at will! "

Schmiss, which was particularly strange to observers from outside the Central European cultural area, also influenced the image of Germany and the Germans abroad.

Since the Second World War

Changed perception

After the Second World War , all organizations founded before 1945 in Germany and Austria were viewed with skepticism, including the connections forbidden by the National Socialists , often failing to differentiate between striking and non-striking.

The Schmiss became a symbol of an old time, so rather a badge of conservative circles, to which some in turn assumed reactionary or nationalist ideas. The upheavals of 1968 intensified this development. When the number of students at West German universities increased massively in the 1970s, but the number of fraternity students stagnated or even fell, “Schmisträger” gradually became a minority among academics.

Changes in the scale length

A timpani is being prepared for the scale length (2004)

Since the Second World War, significantly fewer lengths per person have been struck on average. Today there is the establishment of the "compulsory games" in compulsory connections, ie a stipulation of the number of lengths that the individual has to beat at least during his active time. Today the spectrum ranges from one to about five compulsory games. This is only a fraction of what any member of a successful alliance achieved before the war.

At the same time, the defensive elements were technically strengthened in mensurfing. A good cover is a part of technically clean fencing today. The “collecting” of Schmissen has been frowned upon for decades, and the very few swimmers strive for a so-called “renown”, that is, a particularly distinctive Schmiss, which should help its wearer to gain a reputation .

In addition to the more defensive setting of the timpani edges, the significantly reduced distance between the timpani edges compared to the past (the so-called scale length ) is a reason why there are far fewer facial throws today. In the fencing comments of some weapon rings , there were also changes to the regulations regarding the hit area: This is how the "high comment" was created, in which it is forbidden to hit below the eyes.

The "nose plate" on the goggles, which has been used in some cases since the first half of the 20th century to protect the nose , became more and more popular after the Second World War and is now included in most fencing comments . At some university locations , the ears are now protected from hits by so-called "ear leather", and especially at technical universities in northern Germany so-called "cheek leather" are worn, which protect the lower half of the face, so that facial tears are hardly possible there.

Todays situation

In the opinion of the author Dietrich Heither , the Schmiss clarified as "a certificate of privilege " in 1999, "that the pauker is capable of giving up himself and is therefore suitable for positions of power that demand selflessness ."

Although facial pains have become rare, there is still the opportunity to see a classic peck on the face in public or with prominent conversation partners on television, only this is only recognized as such by a minority of the population. A well-known example is the former Allianz board member Henning Schulte-Noelle .

A 2008 study at the University of Liverpool found that men with facial scars are particularly attractive to women who are looking for short-term partnerships . This has been interpreted to mean that scars evoke an association of masculinity and courage as well as strength and health.

treatment

Title page of a medical publication on the treatment of Schmissen by Paukarzt Friedrich Immisch (1885)

After the end of the respective length, injured timpani edges are treated by the timpani doctor , who usually sews the cracks that have arisen on site or in an adjoining room of the timpani . As a rule, the supply takes place without anesthesia . In order to alleviate the pain , it is therefore common for the edge of the tympanic membrane to be “counter-pain” during “patching”, in particular by pressing the hand very hard or on the temple area.

By far the most common gashes are those in the scalp . These are easy for the doctor to treat and can also be stapled . The most common facial injuries are punctures on the temple - often the superficial temporal artery is hit - or in the cheek .

A normal throw, i. H. a simple incision, healed without consequences and usually good. Complicated injuries are relatively rare: Scherzel is a cut piece of the scalp; A rag is used when a piece of scalp has not been completely knocked off, but is still connected to the rest of the scalp. In contrast to the Schmiss, Scherzel and Lappen mostly result from unclean blows and are therefore rather the exception. Particularly painful, but also rare, are punctures in the lips, ears or nose. Very rarely, facial paralysis can also result from a blow .

literature

  • Peter Hauser (Ed.): Schmisse, Lappen, Bochensplitter - Paukärztliche Schriften des 19. Century. WJK-Verlag, Hilden 2005, ISBN 3-933892-91-0 .
  • Peter Hauser (Ed.): It was a mess ... Medical doctoral theses on the scale . WJK-Verlag, Hilden 2007, ISBN 978-3-933892-09-6 .
  • Dietrich Heither, Michael Gehler, Alexandra Kurth: Blood and Paukboden . Fischer (Tb.), Frankfurt am Main 2001, ISBN 3-596-13378-5 .
  • Peter Krause : O old lad glory - the students and their customs . Verlag Styria, Graz / Vienna / Cologne 1997, ISBN 3-222-12478-7 .
  • Konrad Purrucker: The Surgery of the Mensur Floor. 1926. (Reprinted by WJK-Verlag, Hilden 2005, ISBN 3-933892-31-7 )

Web links

Wiktionary: Schmiss  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations
Commons : Schmisse  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Schmiss. In: Digital dictionary of the German language . Retrieved January 16, 2020
  2. ↑ Peter Hauser: For guidance: About the drum doctor system in the 19th and beginning of the 20th century with special consideration of Heidelberg. In: Peter Hauser (Ed.): Schmisse, Lappen, Boneensplitter - Paukärztliche Schriften des 19. Century. Pp. 3–41, here p. 15.
  3. ^ A b Wilhelm Fabricius : The German Corps. A historical representation with special consideration of the scaling . Thilo, Berlin 1898, p. 417.
  4. ↑ Werner Lackner: The scale length. The ritual duel between German students . (PDF; 667 kB) Vienna 1997, p. 66f.
  5. ^ Martin Biastoch: Tübingen students in the empire. A socio-historical investigation. Thorbecke, Sigmaringen 1996, ISBN 3-7995-3236-6 , p. 200.
  6. ↑ Silke Möller: Between Science and “Burschenherrlichkeit”. Steiner, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 3-515-07842-8 , p. 160.
  7. ↑ Silke Möller: Between Science and “Burschenherrlichkeit”. Steiner, Stuttgart 2001, ISBN 3-515-07842-8 , p. 166.
  8. ↑ Thomas Friedrich: Consciousness performance and structure. Königshausen & Neumann, Würzburg 1999, ISBN 3-8260-1572-X , p. 63ff.
  9. ^ Konrad Jarausch : German Students 1800-1970. Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 1984, p. 59.
  10. ↑ Frank Grobe: Compass and gear. Engineers in the bourgeois emancipation struggle around 1900 - The history of the technical fraternity. In: Klaus Oldenhage (Hrsg.): Representations and sources on the history of the German unity movement in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Volume 17. Heidelberg 2009, p. 144.
  11. ↑ Jerome K. Jerome : Three men on a stroll . Bristol 1900; German translation: Frankfurt 1905. Quoted from: Georg Nilreh: Kompendium corpsstudentischer Weisheiten . 2012, ISBN 978-3-8442-3066-6 , p. 34.
  12. ↑ Hans-Ulrich Wehler : The German Empire 1871-1918. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1994, p. 130.
  13. ^ Norbert Elias : The satisfactory society. In: Michael Schröter (ed.): Studies on the Germans. Power struggles and habitus development in the 19th and 20th centuries. Suhrkamp Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 2009, ISBN 978-3-518-28608-1 , pp. 61–158, here: p. 85.
  14. ^ Moritz Föllmer: The Berlin tabloid press and the politics of individuality in the interwar period. In: Wolfgang Hardtwig (Ed.): Orders in the crisis. On the political and cultural history of Germany 1900–1933. Oldenbourg, Munich 2007, pp. 293–326, here p. 300.
  15. ↑ Mark Twain : A Tramp Abroad . American Publishing, 1880. 64. .
  16. ↑ Peter Hauser: For guidance: About the drum doctor system in the 19th and beginning of the 20th century with special consideration of Heidelberg. In: Peter Hauser (Ed.): Schmisse, Lappen, Boneensplitter - Paukärztliche Schriften des 19. Century. Pp. 3–41, here p. 18.
  17. ^ Sonja Levsen: Elite, masculinity and war: Tübingen and Cambridge students 1900–1929. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2006, p. 101.
  18. ↑ Heinrich Mann : The Subject . Kurt Wolff, Leipzig 1918, p. 30f.
  19. ^ Manfred Koch-Hillebrecht : The German image . Present, history, psychology. CH Beck, Munich 1977, p. 177f.
  20. ↑ Peter Hauser: On the emergence of the determination gauge. In: then and now. Volume 52, 2007, p. 6 ff.
  21. ↑ Peter Hauser: For guidance: About the drum doctor system in the 19th and beginning of the 20th century with special consideration of Heidelberg. In: Peter Hauser (Ed.): Schmisse, Lappen, Boneensplitter - Paukärztliche Schriften des 19. Century. Pp. 3–41, here p. 17.
  22. ↑ Henner Huhle : Nothing changes fencing like the comment. In: then and now. Volume 34, 1989, p. 61.
  23. ↑ Dietrich Heither : Traditional collections of student male associations. Student Associations: Diversity and Unity. In: Peer Pasternak (ed.): Hochschule ost. leipziger contributions to university & science . 3-4 / 99. Leipzig 1999, pp. 104–122, here p. 116.
  24. ↑ Robert Burriss, Hannah Rowland, Anthony Little: Facial scarring Enhances men's attractiveness for short-term relationships. In: Personality and Individual Differences. 46/2, January 2009, pp. 213-217.
  25. ^ A b Tobias Bringmann: Reichstag and duel. The duel question as an internal political conflict in the German Empire 1871–1918. Hochschulverlag, 1997, p. 27.
  26. ↑ Wilhelm Hilger: The hypnosis and the suggestion. Dogma, Bremen 2012, ISBN 978-3-95454-625-1 , p. 112.
  27. ↑ Peter Hauser: For guidance: About the drum doctor system in the 19th and beginning of the 20th century with special consideration of Heidelberg. In: Peter Hauser (Ed.): Schmisse, Lappen, Boneensplitter - Paukärztliche Schriften des 19. Century. Pp. 3–41, here p. 19.
  28. ↑ a b c Peter Hauser: For guidance: About the drum doctor system in the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century with special consideration of Heidelberg. In: Peter Hauser (Ed.): Schmisse, Lappen, Boneensplitter - Paukärztliche Schriften des 19. Century. Pp. 3–41, here p. 20.
  29. ↑ G. Geilke: The small student fencing primer. (PDF; 6.0 MB) 2006, p. 175.