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THE BEAUTY AND HORROR OF WAR

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 10:04:02 +0000

The Economist's international editor discusses the work and legacy of Vasily Grossman, a Russian novelist.

For more on Grossman, see The Economist's review of the radio adaptation of "Life and Fate"; see Molly Young's review of "The Road".

BARBIE TURNS 50

Emily Bobrow — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 23:28:40 +0000

Barbie looks pretty good, for a woman of a certain age. The ever-lithe dame with missile breasts turns 50 next year, and she still turns heads: every second at least three of these dolls are sold, bringing in $3.6 billion annually in retail sales. To wit: read more »

WHAT'S SO GREAT ABOUT ISAIAH BERLIN?

Emily Bobrow — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 22:11:47 +0000

Isaiah Berlin would be turning 100 next year. Even people unfamiliar with his work as a public intellectual and historian know enough to speak of him with reverence. As The Economist wrote in an obituary in 1997:

As in real showbiz, his reputation spread in ever widening circles from an admiring centre. He had 23 honorary doctorates from eminent universities, possibly a record, and many academic awards. As well as being knighted, he received a rarer honour, the Order of Merit, which is limited to 24 people. A writer on western philosophy noted that a cousin of Sir Isaiah was the leader of a Jewish sect, and proclaimed by thousands of his followers to be the Messiah. Sir Isaiah did not match that but, in Oxford terms, he may have come close.

So what made him so special? Robert Cottrell, editor of thebrowser.com, says Berlin was "probably the past century’s greatest historian of ideas". Cottrell does a fine job of explaining Berlin's enduring appeal in this audio interview for The Economist: "He was capable of popularising ideas without vulgarising them."

Listen to the full exchange: