Sir Isaiah Berlin, born 6 June 1909 and died 5 November 1997, was a British social and political theorist, philosopher and historian of ideas, born into a Russian Jewish family in Riga who moved to Petrograd at age six, where he witnessed the Russian Revolution, before his family moved to England in 1921; he was educated at St Paul's School, London, and Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and in 1932 was elected to a prize fellowship at All Souls College, Oxford. From 1957 to 1967 he was Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory at the University of Oxford, and in 1966 he played a role in creating Wolfson College, Oxford, becoming its founding president; he was knighted in 1957 and received the 1979 Jerusalem Prize for his lifelong defence of civil liberties. Berlin's work on liberal theory and on value pluralism, as well as his opposition to Marxism and communism, has had a lasting influence.
Facts
Birth YearSourced to the subject's own account Defining MomentSourced to the subject's own accountHis 1958 lecture Two Concepts of Liberty, distinguishing negative from positive liberty, established his standing as a theorist of value pluralism and liberalism. 1 Birth DateSourced to the subject's own account Notable PublicationSourced to the subject's own accountTwo Concepts of Liberty (1958 inaugural lecture as Chichele Professor at Oxford) 1 Office HeldSourced to the subject's own accountChichele Professor of Social and Political Theory, University of Oxford (1957-1967); founding President of Wolfson College, Oxford (1966); President of the British Academy (1974-1978) 1 Death YearSourced to the subject's own account Death DateSourced to the subject's own account BirthplaceSourced to the subject's own accountRiga, Governorate of Livonia, Russian Empire 1 Death PlaceSourced to the subject's own account TraditionSourced to the subject's own accountLiberalism and value pluralism within the analytic tradition of political theory and the history of ideas; opposed Marxism and communism. 1 Tradition
Tradition (category)Sourced to the subject's own account Tradition (category)Sourced to the subject's own accountMarxism / Critical Theory 1 Classification
NationalitySourced to the subject's own account Connections
In Branch
Source Isaiah Berlin (Wikipedia)
Source Isaiah Berlin (Wikipedia)
Source Isaiah Berlin (Wikipedia)
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Source Isaiah Berlin (Wikipedia)Lead sentence 1tier 3Quote, Lead sentence 1
Sir Isaiah Berlin (6 June 1909 – 5 November 1997) was a British social and political theorist, philosopher, and historian of ideas.
Sources
1. Isaiah Berlin (Wikipedia)
WikipediaLife section, family background passage
Born into a Russian-Jewish family in Riga, he moved to Petrograd at the age of six, where he witnessed the Russian Revolution.
Life section, death passage
Berlin died in Oxford on 5 November 1997, aged 88.
Life section, legacy passage
Berlin's work on liberal theory and on value pluralism, as well as his opposition to Marxism and communism, has had a lasting influence.
Two Concepts of Liberty section
Berlin is known for his inaugural lecture, "Two Concepts of Liberty", delivered in 1958 as Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory at Oxford.
Life section, offices passage
From 1957 to 1967 Berlin was Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory at the University of Oxford.
Lead section, sentence 1
Sir Isaiah Berlin (6 June 1909-5 November 1997) was a British social and political theorist, philosopher, and historian of ideas.
In Branch: Political Philosophy, Infobox: main_interests
Political philosophy, philosophy of history, history of ideas, ethics, Marxism, modern history, Russian history, Russian literature, Romanticism
In Branch: Philosophy of History, Infobox: main_interests
Political philosophy, philosophy of history, history of ideas, ethics, Marxism, modern history, Russian history, Russian literature, Romanticism
In Branch: Ethics, Infobox: main_interests
Political philosophy, philosophy of history, history of ideas, ethics, Marxism, modern history, Russian history, Russian literature, Romanticism
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