Béla Juhos


Béla Juhos was a Hungarian-Austrian philosopher and member of the Vienna Circle.

Life

Juhos was born November 22, 1901 in Vienna into a Hungarian family of low nobility. His father was a Hungarian tradesman and entrepreneur owning an iron wholesale in Vienna and Budapest. Juhos attended primary school in Budapest and spoke Hungarian as a child. In 1909 he moved to Vienna, where he learned German and completed Realgymnasium in 1920.
Juhos studied mathematics, physics and philosophy at the University of Vienna. In 1926 he completed his studies with a dissertation under Moritz Schlick with the title "To What Extent did Schopenhauer Do Justice to Kantian Ethics?". From the beginning of the Schlick Circle in 1924 until its dissolution in 1936 Juhos participated in the meetings of the Vienna Circle.
Due to his economic independence Juhos could stay in Vienna as a private scholar during the Second World War – except for the period of his military service in 1942–1944.
Together with Victor Kraft Juhos was the only member of the Vienna Circle to remain in Vienna during the Second World War and to continue to work at the University of Vienna after the war. In 1948 he submitted his Habilitation thesis with the title "Cognition and its Achievements" under Victor Kraft and became Privatdozent. In 1955, Juhos was appointed associate professor, but he did not obtain a permanent position at the Faculty of Philosophy. For this reason, his influence in research and teaching remained limited.
Juhos died on May 27, 1971 in Vienna.

Works (selection)