Albert Einstein, world-renowned as a physicist, was also publicly committed to radical political views. Despite the vast literature on Einstein, Einstein and Twentieth Century Politics is the first comprehensive study of his politics, covering his opinions and campaigns on pacifism, Zionism, control of nuclear weapons, world government, freedom, and racial equality. Most studies look at Einstein in isolation but here he is viewed alongside a 'liberal international' of global intellectuals, including Gandhi, Albert Schweitzer, Bertrand Russell, H.G. Wells, George Bernard Shaw, Romain Rolland, Thomas Mann, and John Dewey. Frequently called upon to join campaigns on great issues of war, peace, and social values, they all knew or corresponded with Einstein. This volume examines how Einstein and comparable intellectuals sought to exert a 'salutary influence', as Einstein put it in a letter to Freud. Close attention is given to the unique qualities Einstein brought to his interventions in political debate. His influence derived in the first instance from his celebrity status as the scientist of genius whose theory of relativity was both incomprehensible to most and seemingly relevant to many aspects of aspects of culture and the cosmos. Einstein's complex and enigmatic personality, which combined intense devotion to privacy and a capacity to perform on the public stage, also contributed to the Einstein myth. Studying Einstein's politics, it is argued here, takes us not only into the mind of Einstein but to the heart of the great public issues of the twentieth century.

Recovering the forgotten discipline of Natural Philosophy for the modern world This book argues for the retrieval of 'natural philosophy', a concept that faded into comparative obscurity as individual scientific disciplines became established and institutionalized. Natural philosophy was understood in the early modern period as a way of exploring the human relationship with the natural world, encompassing what would now be seen as the distinct disciplines of the natural sciences, mathematics, music, philosophy, and theology. The first part of the work represents a critical conversation with the tradition, identifying the essential characteristics of natural philosophy, particularly its emphasis on both learning about and learning from nature. After noting the factors which led to the disintegration of natural philosophy during the nineteenth century, the second part of the work sets out the reasons why natural philosophy should be retrieved, and a creative and innovative proposal for how this might be done. This draws on Karl Popper's 'Three Worlds' and Mary Midgley's notion of using multiple maps in bringing together the many aspects of the human encounter with the natural world. Such a retrieved or 're-imagined' natural philosophy is able to encourage both human attentiveness and respectfulness towards Nature, while enfolding both the desire to understand the natural world, and the need to preserve the affective, imaginative, and aesthetic aspects of the human response to nature.

For peace advocates a corollary to Clausewitz’s dictum that “war is politics by other means” might be that other politics could prevent war. By highlighting both individual peace advocates and antiwar/peace organizations from World War I through the wars of the 21st century, the chapters will provide insights into how these individuals and organizations articulated their opposition to and mobilized against specific wars and international/regional conflicts. Organized roughly in chronological order, each chapter will illuminate the socio-historical conditions under which such peace advocacy contested state aggression and armed combat at the national and/or transnational levels. Beyond understanding the specific socio-historical circumstances within which these antiwar and peace advocates and organizations operated and their resultant achievements and failures, the book as a whole will examine the kind of politics that perpetuate war and those that offer a challenge to that perpetuation. Scholars, students, and the general public interested in the history of modern and contemporary wars, peace and conflict studies, and ethical/political perspectives in the 20th and 21st centuries should find much to reflect upon in this book.

Albert Einstein, world-renowned as a physicist, was also publicly committed to radical political views. Despite the vast literature on Einstein, Einstein and Twentieth- Century Politics is the first comprehensive study of his politics, covering his opinions and campaigns on pacifism, Zionism, control of nuclear weapons, world government, freedom, and racial equality. Most studies look at Einstein in isolation but here he is viewed alongside a 'liberal international' of global intellectuals, including Gandhi, Albert Schweitzer, Bertrand Russell, H.G. Wells, George Bernard Shaw, Romain Rolland, Thomas Mann, and John Dewey. Frequently called upon to join campaigns on great issues of war, peace, and social values, they all knew or corresponded with Einstein. This volume examines how Einstein and comparable intellectuals sought to exert a 'salutary influence', as Einstein put it in a letter to Freud. Close attention is given to the unique qualities Einstein brought to his interventions in political debate. His influence derived in the first instance from his celebrity status as the scientist of genius whose theory of relativity was both incomprehensible to most and seemingly relevant to many aspects of aspects of culture and the cosmos. Einstein's complex and enigmatic personality, which combined intense devotion to privacy and a capacity to perform on the public stage, also contributed to the Einstein myth. Studying Einstein's politics, it is argued here, takes us not only into the mind of Einstein but to the heart of the great public issues of the twentieth century.

The 70 years from 1880 to 1950 witnessed the final ascent of humankind into the modern age. Historically, this period is characterized by deep political, social and economic crises. However, parallel to this and much less known in the public, rational scientific thinking also experienced the darkest and deepest crisis of its own history. All the great modern scientific discoveries like quantum theory, genetics and neurology are products of this. Ground-breaking discoveries, profound crises, revolutionary thoughts, refutation of previously unshakable beliefs - these years are marked by scientific achievements of numerous great minds, who overturned our understanding of the world, of space, time and infinity, of life, logic and calculability almost overnight. The "intuitive genius" of these pioneers still forms the foundation of today’s scientific thinking and technological progress. In fact, tackling and overcoming those deep scientific crises shaped our modern life like nothing else. The resulting reorientation of our understanding of nature and ourselves allowed ancient philosophical questions to appear in a new light: "What is reality?", "What can we know about the world?" or "What is man's place in nature?". The most exciting period in the history of science is retold here in an entertaining way.

This work sees the 20th century as a long century, and focuses on the crucial political events of the century. While it gives attention to the high level of violence in Europe, it weaves into the themes the struggle for hegemony, the establishment of common economic and political institutions, and the advance of science. A bibliographical essay in each chapter allows the readers to expand on issues discussed in the text.

Excerpts from criticism of the works of novelists, poets, playwrights, and other creative writers, 1900-1960.

A selection of protest texts of the 20th century, from Ellen Wilkinson on the Jarrow hunger marches and Jack London on the East End, through the key documents of the Black power and anti-Apartheid movements, right up to Earl Spencer's speech at Diana's funeral.

Presents biographies of the men and women who wrestled with the complex theoretical problems of twentieth-century culture. With few exceptions the theorists treated in this volume focus their critical attention on the idea an nature of the human "subject," and how that subject is created and maintained