Project:Why are some of Wittgenstein’s texts missing from this website?: Difference between revisions

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Almost everything we now have in volume format—in such a way that we can step into a bookshop and say “I’m looking for a copy of…”—was published posthumously. After Wittgenstein died in 1951, his appointed literary executors, G.E.M. Anscombe and G.H. von Wright, were left with the task of sorting and grouping his handwritten notes and typescripts in order to publish them.<ref>For more details, see von Wright, G.H. (1969). "The Wittgenstein Papers". Philosophical Review. 78 (4): 483–503.</ref>
Almost everything we now have in volume format—in such a way that we can step into a bookshop and say “I’m looking for a copy of…”—was published posthumously. After Wittgenstein died in 1951, his appointed literary executors, G.E.M. Anscombe and G.H. von Wright, were left with the task of sorting and grouping his handwritten notes and typescripts in order to publish them.<ref>For more details, see von Wright, G.H. (1969). "The Wittgenstein Papers". Philosophical Review. 78 (4): 483–503.</ref>


Now, the ''Nachlass'' itself—the collection of Wittgenstein’s manuscript material, the “raw” Wittgenstein—has been available online since the 2010s, almost in its entirety, both in a fac-simile edition and in an XML/HTML transcription. This was made possible by the generosity of the copyright holders of the originals, The Master and Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge, and the work of the Wittgenstein Archives Bergen. Much of the digitised content has been released under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial licence (CC BY-NC).<ref>For more information, see the website of the Wittgenstein Archives Bergen and WittgensteinSource.</ref>
Now, the ''Nachlass'' itself—the collection of Wittgenstein’s manuscript material, the “raw” Wittgenstein—has been available online since the 2010s, almost in its entirety, both in a fac-simile edition and in an XML/HTML transcription. This was made possible by the generosity of the copyright holders of the originals, The Master and Fellows of Trinity College, Cambridge, and the work of the Wittgenstein Archives Bergen. Much of the digitised content has been released under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial licence (CC BY-NC).<ref>For more information, see the website of the [http://wab.uib.no/ Wittgenstein Archives Bergen] and [http://www.wittgensteinsource.org/ WittgensteinSource].</ref>


The intellectual property rights on the ''Nachlass'' will expire, in those countries where the copyright term is the life of the author plus 70 years, on 1 January 2022. Everything in Wittgenstein’s own writing will then be in the public domain in such countries, the list of which includes Austria (where Wittgenstein was born), the United Kingdom (where Wittgenstein became a naturalised citizen), and Italy (where the Ludwig Wittgenstein Project is based and where its servers are located).
The intellectual property rights on the ''Nachlass'' will expire, in those countries where the copyright term is the life of the author plus 70 years, on 1 January 2022. Everything in Wittgenstein’s own writing will then be in the public domain in such countries, the list of which includes Austria (where Wittgenstein was born), the United Kingdom (where Wittgenstein became a naturalised citizen), and Italy (where the Ludwig Wittgenstein Project is based and where its servers are located).
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It is very difficult to navigate the intricacies of copyright law. Precedents help.
It is very difficult to navigate the intricacies of copyright law. Precedents help.


Anne Frank was murdered in Bergen-Belsen in 1945. Her diary was expected to enter the public domain in Holland, as well as in other countries with a 70-years copyright term, on 1 January 2016. In 2015, however, representatives of the Anne Fank Fonds, the foundation that inherited the rights to the diary after the death of Anne Frank’s father, Otto, released an announcement claiming that, because the diary was co-authored by Otto Frank himself, the text would only enter the public domain after the expiration of the 70-years term after ''his'' death, which occurred in 1980.<ref>Dwyer, C. (31 December 2015). "'Mein Kampf' Enters Public Domain; Arguably, Anne Frank's Diary May, Too". ''National Public Radio''. Retrieved 14 December 2021; Carvajal, D. (13 November 2015). "Anne Frank's Diary Gains 'Co-Author' in Copyright Move". ''The New York Times''. Retrieved 14 December 2021.</ref> Otto Frank indeed played a meaningful role in preparing the original 1947 edition of the diary by collating and editing his daughter’s original handwritten notes. The claim that he was a “co-author”, however, was never made before 2015, and when it was made it was regarded by many as a move to ensure the foundation’s income for another generation at the expense of humanity’s right to freely access one of the most important books documenting the horrors of its recent history.
Anne Frank was murdered in Bergen-Belsen in 1945. Her diary was expected to enter the public domain in Holland, as well as in other countries with a 70-years copyright term, on 1 January 2016. In 2015, however, representatives of the Anne Fank Fonds, the foundation that inherited the rights to the diary after the death of Anne Frank’s father, Otto, released an announcement claiming that, because the diary was co-authored by Otto Frank himself, the text would only enter the public domain after the expiration of the 70-years term after ''his'' death, which occurred in 1980.<ref>Dwyer, C. (31 December 2015). [https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2015/12/31/461606275/mein-kampf-enters-public-domain-arguably-anne-franks-diary-may-too "'Mein Kampf' Enters Public Domain; Arguably, Anne Frank's Diary May, Too"]. ''National Public Radio''. Retrieved 14 December 2021; Carvajal, D. (13 November 2015). [https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/14/books/anne-frank-has-a-co-as-diary-gains-co-author-in-legal-move.html "Anne Frank's Diary Gains 'Co-Author' in Copyright Move"]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved 14 December 2021.</ref> Otto Frank indeed played a meaningful role in preparing the original 1947 edition of the diary by collating and editing his daughter’s original handwritten notes. The claim that he was a “co-author”, however, was never made before 2015, and when it was made it was regarded by many as a move to ensure the foundation’s income for another generation at the expense of humanity’s right to freely access one of the most important books documenting the horrors of its recent history.


The issue doesn’t seem to have been addressed by a court. The diary was removed from Wikisource in February 2016 by the Wikimedia Foundation for reasons unrelated to authorship, and rather connected to “the overreach of the United States’ current copyright law”.<ref>Rogers, J. (10 February 2016). "Wikimedia Foundation removes The Diary of Anne Frank due to copyright law requirements". ''Diff. News from across the Wikimedia movement''. Retrieved 14 December 2021.</ref> In Europe, former member of French parliament Isabelle Attard published the original Dutch edition on her own website accompanied by an explicit and passionate statement rejecting the “privatisation of knowledge” and defending the public domain;<ref>Attard, I. "Vive Anne Frank, vive le Domaine Public". ''Magazine ISABELLEATTARD''. Retrieved 14 December 2021.</ref> the file was never taken down.
The issue doesn’t seem to have been addressed by a court. The diary was removed from Wikisource in February 2016 by the Wikimedia Foundation for reasons unrelated to authorship, and rather connected to “the overreach of the United States’ current copyright law”.<ref>Rogers, J. (10 February 2016). [https://diff.wikimedia.org/2016/02/10/anne-frank-diary-removal/ "Wikimedia Foundation removes The Diary of Anne Frank due to copyright law requirements"]. ''Diff. News from across the Wikimedia movement''. Retrieved 14 December 2021.</ref> In Europe, former member of French parliament Isabelle Attard published the original Dutch edition on her own website accompanied by an explicit and passionate statement rejecting the “privatisation of knowledge” and defending the public domain;<ref>Attard, I. [https://isabelleattard.fr/vive-anne-frank-vive-le-domaine-public/ "Vive Anne Frank, vive le Domaine Public"]. ''Magazine ISABELLEATTARD''. Retrieved 14 December 2021.</ref> the file was never taken down.


=== The copyright status of Wittgenstein’s posthumous works: what we are uncertain of ===
=== The copyright status of Wittgenstein’s posthumous works: what we are uncertain of ===