When intellectuals encounter politics

Author: (American) Marc Rilsky
Publisher:
Publication Date: 2005-11-01
Features: In the past century, European history has seen many examples where philosophers, writers, and jurists living in democratic, planned, or fascist societies supported or defended totalitarian principles and terror regimes. But why did intellectuals who should have been vigilant against the evil of tyranny betray the ideals of freedom and independent research? Why did they, either covertly or openly, take positions that endorsed large-scale oppression and human suffering? Taking the lives and careers of thinkers such as Leo Strauss, Carl Schmitt, Walter Benjamin, Alexandre Kojève, Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida as examples, Marc Rilsky reveals how these intellectuals were blinded by the ideologies and upheavals of their time, rendering them blind to totalitarianism, atrocities, and state terror. Rilsky explains why intellectuals who could not control their passion for reading were drawn into political arenas they barely understood, profoundly impacting our knowledge and political life.
Marc Rilsky wrote this book out of a sense of disappointment that only lovers of truth could feel. He observed that in the face of the atrocities of the 20th century, these profound and influential thinkers were politically irresponsible. Rilsky is sharp-witted and possesses a gift for revealing the truth. Every study in this collection is thought-provoking and enlightening. — The New York Times Book Review
When it comes to critiques of European intellectuals, Marc Rilsky is undoubtedly talented. His work is unpretentious, profound, and fluid. — Paul Berman
In the past century, European history has seen many examples where philosophers, writers, and jurists living in democratic, planned, or fascist societies supported or defended totalitarian principles and terror regimes. But why did intellectuals who should have been vigilant against the evil of tyranny betray the ideals of freedom and independent research? Why did they, either covertly or openly, take positions that endorsed large-scale oppression and human suffering? Taking the lives and careers of thinkers such as Leo Strauss, Carl Schmitt, Walter Benjamin, Alexandre Kojève, Michel Foucault, and Jacques Derrida as examples, Marc Rilsky reveals how these intellectuals were blinded by the ideologies and upheavals of their time, rendering them blind to totalitarianism, atrocities, and state terror. Rilsky explains why intellectuals who could not control their passion for reading were drawn into political arenas they barely understood, profoundly impacting our knowledge and political life.