Aileen M. Kelly

An intellectual biography of Alexander Herzen, emphasizing the influence of Hegal and Feurbach, the French Revolution, and, later in Herzen's career, Proudhon. The book also shows how Herzen's background in the natural sciences led him to understand the role that chance plays in history.

I read the book in anticipation of reading Herzen's autobiography, My Past and Thoughts, so I was surprised to find that this important literary work was barely mentioned here. Still, this book captures the complexity of ideas that inspired his philosophy.… (mehr)