# Ernest Nagel an Rudolf Carnap, 5. Jänner 1935 Jänner 1935

Dear Professor and Mrs. Carnap‚

I just received a reply to the letter I sent to Professor CossP Coss, Prof.. I am enclosing it for you to read, and ask you to be good enough to return it to me. (I keep no duplicates of the letters I send, but preserve those sent to me.) I regret that the prospects of your being invited to ColumbiaI Columbia University, New York NY are so dim. I shall hope that Kemp Smith will decline, and that nobody else but you will be available.

I also wrote to my friend, Professor Sidney HookP Hook, Sidney, 1902–1989, am. Philosoph, verh. mit Ann Hook of New York UniversityI New York University (NYU), New York NY, about the possibility of your coming to the U.S. for a lecture tour. Of course, I imposed a pledge of secrecy upon him. He also replied, and writes as follows: “Tell Carnap that Universities throughout the U.S. becoming politically more reactionary daily and to exclude from his prospectus anything which some dumb conservative – who “feel” these things – might regard as cultural Bolshevism. I wish I could get him to NYUI New York University (NYU), New York NY for a year, but it doesn’t seem possible now and we couldn’t pay him enough (at the outside $2000 out of which he would have to pay all travelling expenses.)”. In the light of these remarks, perhaps it would be wiser if you replaced the lecture on the relation between contemporary philosophy and culture by something less full of dynamite.

Thank you very much for the reprintB and the pictures. Apparently the snap-shots taken of Mrs. CarnapP Carnap, Ina (eig. Elisabeth Maria immacul[ata] Ignatia), 1904–1964, geb. Stöger, heiratete 1933 Rudolf Carnap in the open air were not a success, but I am very pleased with those you did send. As for the picture of me and by being overshadowed by Professor CarnapP Carnap, Rudolf, 1891-1970, dt.-am. Philosoph, 1917-1929 verh. mit Elisabeth Carnap und ab 1933 mit Ina Carnap, it so true to life that I am delighted with it. But I cannot repress the sorry reflection that while there is a heavenly nimbus in the background it is a “stiff-necked” Jew who occupies the stage.

I attended one meeting of the Wiener KreisI Schlick-Zirkel, Wiener Kreis. SchlickP Schlick, Moritz, 1882–1936, dt.-öst. Philosoph, verh. mit Blanche Guy Schlick translated from Lewis’P Lewis, Clarence Irving, 1883–1964, am. Philosoph paperB and he and the others disposed of the examples of meaningful but allegedly unverifiable propositions. SchlickP Schlick, Moritz, 1882–1936, dt.-öst. Philosoph, verh. mit Blanche Guy Schlick remarked referring to the “Notes for a reply to LewisP Lewis, Clarence Irving, 1883–1964, am. Philosoph” which you sent him, that ‘CarnapP Carnap, Rudolf, 1891-1970, dt.-am. Philosoph, 1917-1929 verh. mit Elisabeth Carnap und ab 1933 mit Ina Carnap hat sich getroffen gefühlt’ on the score of some of Lewis’P Lewis, Clarence Irving, 1883–1964, am. Philosoph criticism of the positivists. He implied, so I understood him, that he himself never held any of the positions which you thought necessary to disavow. I must say that if that is the case I never understood Schlick’sP Schlick, Moritz, 1882–1936, dt.-öst. Philosoph, verh. mit Blanche Guy Schlick position, for I distinctly recollect his maintaining what seems to me a mistaken form of logical atomism. My own impression of the meeting is that, with the exception of MengerP Menger, Karl, 1902–1985, öst.-am. Mathematiker, verh. mit Hilda Menger and KaufmannP Kaufmann, Felix, 1895–1949, öst.-am. Philosoph, verh. mit Else Kaufmann, it had the air of congregation with the members singing in chorus with SchlickP Schlick, Moritz, 1882–1936, dt.-öst. Philosoph, verh. mit Blanche Guy Schlick. I had the distinct sense that you were very conspicuous by your absence – an impression which KaufmannP Kaufmann, Felix, 1895–1949, öst.-am. Philosoph, verh. mit Else Kaufmann later verified. At the next meeting, I think on the 10th, SchlickP Schlick, Moritz, 1882–1936, dt.-öst. Philosoph, verh. mit Blanche Guy Schlick will read from the unpublished manuscriptsB Wittgenstein, Ludwig!0@Das 1933 erwähnte Buch ??? of WittgensteinP Wittgenstein, Ludwig, 1889–1951, öst.-brit. Philosoph. Everybody must promise to make proper acknowledgements if he should publish anything on the basis of what he hears. I expect to go, and hope to write you about what goes on.

I have been reading the booksB Quine, Willard Van Orman!1934@A System of Logistic, Cambridge MA, 1934 B Popper, Karl R.!1935@Logik der Forschung, Wien, 1935 of QuineP Quine, Willard Van Orman, 1908–2000, am. Philosoph, verh. mit Naomi Quine (1932–1947) und Marjorie Boynton Quine (1948–1998) and PopperP Popper, Karl Raimund, 1902–1994, öst.-brit. Philosoph, verh. mit Josefine Popper. The former interested me only mildly though I recognize it as a solid contribution. I do not quite see, however, how one is to reconcile his view that propositions are what sentences denote with what he says elsewhere, e. g. about the identity of propositions. Popper’sP Popper, Karl Raimund, 1902–1994, öst.-brit. Philosoph, verh. mit Josefine Popper bookB Popper, Karl R.!1935@Logik der Forschung, Wien, 1935 is very 🕮 stimulating, especially his criticism of conventionalism and the discussion of probability. I still think, however, that it may be possible to assign a frequency interpretation to “probability of theories”, although I confess I do not know how to do it in detail. I met him once, and had an interesting discussion. Er ist mir ein sehr sympathischer Mensch – full of himself and like most Jews full of his own troubles, but likeable nonetheless. I have the impression that his brusque criticism of you and other positivists is largely a matter of terminology, and wonder whether you are of the same opinion.

I have run into some difficulties myself concerning my marriage. I discovered that both in Italy and France a six months residence requirement is necessary before the ceremony is performed, and have cabled home to find out whether less rigorous requirements obtain in some other European country. The trouble is that if EdithP Nagel, Edith, geb. Haggstrom, verh. mit Ernest Nagel comes and we cannot get married very shortly, hotels may not admit us as a pair, and the expense of having to take separate rooms would be too much for us. So at present I am impatiently awaiting advice from home, and meanwhile when and where EdithP Nagel, Edith, geb. Haggstrom, verh. mit Ernest Nagel will come is still in the lap of the gods.

I send you both my cordial greetings and warm esteem.

Sincerely‚
Ernest Nagel

Brief, msl., 2 Seiten, RC 029-05-16; Briefkopf: msl. American Express Co., Karntnerring 14.  /  January 5, 1935.

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