21 of 22 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A collection of previously unpublished writings from the last decade of the life of editor & World War II survivor Hannah Arendt, Oct 7 2005
By Midwest Book Review - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Responsibility and Judgment (Paperback)
Responsibility And Judgment is a collection of previously unpublished writings from the last decade of the life of editor and World War II survivor Hannah Arendt (1906-1975). Chapters wrestle with complex moral issues and philosophical questions both in general and in relation to specific events such as judicial trials of World War II criminals and the repercussions that America's failed war effort in Vietnam had on the nation's policies and psyche. Written in clear, no-nonsense terms, Responsibility And Judgment is as accessible to lay readers as it is to philosophers, and offers its insights free from the constraints of political ideology. Highly recommended.
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A compilation of thought-provoking texts, Nov 4 2006
By Alexandros Gezerlis "Alex Gezerlis" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Responsibility and Judgment (Paperback)
Given that none of the editorial reviews on this page contain a table of contents, I decided it may be wise to copy it here:
Introduction by Jerome Kohn
A Note on the Text
Prologue
I. RESPONSIBILITY
Personal Responsibility Under Dictatorship
Some Questions of Moral Philosophy
Collective Responsibility
Thinking and Moral Considerations
II. JUDGMENT
Reflections on Little Rock
The Deputy: Guilt by Silence?
Auschwitz on Trial
Home to Roost
The first part deals with somewhat abstract questions, whereas the second is an application of Hannah Arendt's moral and more generally philosophical considerations to real-world situations. The fundamental text contained in this volume is "Some Questions of Moral Philosophy", which is based on four lectures Arendt gave in 1965. In it, Arendt deals with Socrates, Immanuel Kant, Paul of Tarsus, Augustine of Hippo, and Friedrich Nietzsche while discussing thinking, willing and judging. Also of note is Arendt's examination of Dr. Franz Lucas's case (described in "Auschwitz on Trial"). In a nutshell, this is a very interesting, though somewhat mixed and slightly repetitive, collection of essays, speeches, and lectures by a significant Selbstdenker.
Alexandros Gezerlis
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Outstanding Work on Responsibility, Mar 31 2009
By dizzy dean - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Responsibility and Judgment (Paperback)
What would you do under a dictatorship? Arendt poses this question for all of us in her collection of essays dealing with the relationship between the individual and the state--in particular, what can the individual do in a system that is evil. Similar to a number of writers in circumstances not unlike her own (Remarque, Silone, Bonhoeffer) she argues that we each have the capability to retain our own sense of goodness and avoid the "banality of evil" she found with Eichmann.