Hannah Arendt

Samantha Rose Hill is a senior fellow at the Hannah Arendt Center for Politics and Humanities and associate faculty at the Brooklyn Institute for Social Research. Her work has appeared in the Los Angeles Review of Books, Aeon, LitHub, OpenDemocracy, Public Seminar, Contemporary Political Theory and Theory and Event. For more information, visit samantharosehill.com

"Hill notes that working on Augustine led Arendt to one of her central concepts – love of the world, or amor mundi . . . Arendt’s legacy is not a doctrine or a philosophical system. It is a bracing induction into thinking about the political and facing up to its promises as well as its failures." - New York Review of Books"The go-to biography going forward . . . Stephens’ achievement is outstanding. All students of Stoicism, or of Roman imperial history, and the readers, by now in their hundreds of thousands, who find the life and work of Marcus Aurelius to be an inspiration, are very much in his debt." - Stoicism Today"If there can be a life-affirming book about death, this is it. Jonathan Romain’s compassion and humanity permeate every page. His professional and personal experiences have given him privileged access to the views of patients and their relatives. Their hopes and fears have influenced his opinions and provide the background to this story." - Graeme Catto, former President of the General Medical Council"With originality and depth, Paul Dobraszczyk explores the rich lodes, veins and seams of interconnections between the Earth’s own architecture, and how humans have used this to make their own no less extraordinary constructions from its rock resources. An engaging journey through ideas, imagination and history as much as it is one through strata and the built environment, The Matter of Architecture will open new perspectives to its readers." - Jan Zalasiewicz, author of The Planet in a Pebble"To read the caring, humane views put forward by Rabbi Jonathan Romain was a huge relief. Obviously, as he is in favour of changing the law, it is unsurprising that I welcome his contribution to the debate. But he is also fair-minded and bases his arguments on real evidence." - Esther Rantzen"A book that will upend our view of the past, this time disabusing us of the Medieval reputation of dirt and lack of hygiene . . . Harvey's revisionist history uncovers a time when people strove to live a healthy and balanced life." - Sue Baker, The Bookseller: Health and Diet Spotlight 'Expert Pick'"In 1674, microbiologist Antoni van Leeuwenhoek made 'his most sensational discovery', writes historian Geertje Dekkers in her revealing, finely illustrated biography." - Andrew Robinson, Nature"Paul Dobraszczyk is a collector. He curates, categorises, and contextualises compelling lists. This book, happily, is no exception, and adds another rich volume to his series of engrossing compendia. It prompts delight in its inclusions and fascinating questions about the themes and connections it inspires." - Tim Waterman, Professor of Landscape Theory, The Bartlett School of Architecture, and author of The Landscape of Utopia"Stephens writes with vigor and verve, and he refrains from flaunting the expertise he clearly possesses. It’s to his credit that in this book he faces head-on the controversies surrounding Marcus’ reign." - The Wall Street Journal"In The Medieval Guide to Healthy Living, Katherine Harvey offers a clearly written, lively exposé of medieval ideas about, and practices for, health and wellness that challenge our modern misconceptions of the era. At times serious but often infused with humour, Harvey’s work reminds us that concern for our health, and taking action to protect it, is part of what makes us human, even if our understanding of how the body works has changed over the centuries." - Lori Jones, Adjunct Professor, University of Ottawa, and author of Patterns of Plague: Changing Ideas about Plague in England and France, 1348–1750"Jonathan Romain is a gentle, insightful and honest guide to assisted dying, and makes a powerful case for it. This moving book left me thinking this option is a loving and necessary expression of our care for one another." - Revd Canon Rosie Harper"If there can be a life-affirming book about death, this is it. Jonathan Romain’s compassion and humanity permeate every page. His professional and personal experiences have given him privileged access to the views of patients and their relatives. Their hopes and fears have influenced his opinions and provide the background to this story." - Graeme Catto, former President of the General Medical Council"This book is by far the best biography of Van Leeuwenhoek to date. It is thoroughly documented, very well written (at times very funny), and [strikes] the right balance between academic discourse and the common-sense approach so cherished by Van Leeuwenhoek . . . A must-read for anyone interested in Van Leeuwenhoek and, more generally, the cultural world of the Dutch seventeenth century." - Eric Jorink, Professor at Leiden University and co-editor of Newton and the Netherlands"Hill sparingly and undramatically chooses her details (without, thankfully, passing over the gossip) . . . She is evidently so used to explaining Arendt’s ideas to nervous freshmen that each chapter contains a SparkNotes-like summary of the major works written during the time period in question. They are concise and comprehensible . . . Hill was well situated to go diving for gems in Arendt’s papers, letters, and marginalia . . . Hill spares us the clichéd, tabloid-ish critiques that make up a sizable chunk of Arendtian lore (“she was a self-hating Jew”; “I can’t believe she loved Heidegger”; “she thought Eichmann’s crimes were banal”; and so on and so forth). Instead, Hill calmly — and quietly, but without truckling — applies her close readings of Arendt’s most controversial ideas to our own oftentimes taut and illiberal social atmosphere." - LA Review of Books"Samantha Rose Hill repositions Arendt as a feminist heroine, "demanding, unapologetic and opinionated," ever ready to confront male dominance in a discipline that she came to reject: Midway though her American academic career she began describing herself as a political writer rather than a philosopher." - Wall Street Journal"Van Leeuwenhoek is deservedly famous in Holland for his astonishing microscopic discoveries but he’s almost unknown elsewhere. This is an informative and entertaining introduction to his life and work, setting his observations of micro-organisms, blood cells and so on in the context of everyday life and the big scientific questions of early modern Europe. It restores Van Leeuwenhoek to his rightful place alongside Hooke, Newton, Leibniz and other great scientists of his time." - Felicity Henderson, Senior Lecturer in Archives and Material Culture at the University of Exeter and author of Robert Hooke’s Experimental Philosophy"Jonathan Romain is a gentle, insightful and honest guide to assisted dying, and makes a powerful case for it. This moving book left me thinking this option is a loving and necessary expression of our care for one another." - Revd Canon Rosie Harper"We are so fortunate to have someone as articulate and empathetic as Jonathan Romain to make this crucial argument." - Daniel Finkelstein OBE"A useful primer for anyone interested in Marcus’s thought and the tumultuous events that defined his reign . . . Stephens is particularly insightful [on] Christian persecution, which he contextualizes within the broader clash between Roman and Christian moralities." - The New Criterion"Tackling head-on a range of worn cliches about medieval backwardness, Katherine Harvey brings vividly to life a society that was just as preoccupied with health and wellbeing as we are today. This engaging and impeccably researched book casts a new light on the Middle Ages and should be required reading for anyone with an interest in medical history." - Carole Rawcliffe, Emeritus Professor of Medieval History, University of East Anglia, and author of Urban Bodies: Communal Health in Late Medieval English Towns and Cities"Living well was a medieval obsession as much as a contemporary one. Katherine Harvey shows that health advice was founded on surprisingly sophisticated medical ideas about how the human body interacted with its environment. Courts, cities and religious groups across Europe all adopted rules to avoid infection and pestilence. The book is brimming with a wealth of fascinating individual stories of medieval people high and low trying to stay healthy in a world full of risks." - Peter Murray Jones, Fellow and former Librarian of King’s College, Cambridge, and author of The Medicine of the Friars in Medieval England"The best and most balanced account of the assisted dying debate. It favours assisted dying in a way that addresses all its aspects. And it’s very moving as it describes the ways a death may be experienced and marked. It is truly a brilliant, insightful book." - Charlie Falconer, former Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary"We are so fortunate to have someone as articulate and empathetic as Jonathan Romain to make this crucial argument." - Daniel Finkelstein OBE"We may know of Antoni van Leeuwenhoek the microscopist, but what of Van Leeuwenhoek the man? Geertje Dekkers offers a concise and captivating taste of his world as revealed by his copious letters. Come back to seventeenth-century Delft and see where microscopy was born." - Brian J. Ford, Hon FRMS, Hon FLS, author of The Leeuwenhoek Legacy"A model of thoughtfulness, focus, and clarity, this biography of Marcus Aurelius illuminates both the man and his philosophy. It places his life in historical context while offering a lucid window into Stoic thought." - David Fideler, author of Breakfast with Seneca: A Stoic Guide to the Art of Living"this slim, accessible book walks the reader through Arendt’s life while introducing her major works and ideas . . . Most intellectual biographies emphasize ideas over personal details, which is generally the correct approach. But Arendt is different. Her work, as Hill repeatedly shows, was influenced by the events of her life." - The Washington Examiner"This book is brilliant. It’s written by Samantha Rose Hill, who must know as much as anyone about Hannah Arendt. She’s dived into Arendt’s surviving papers, notebooks, and even poetry, spending many hours in the archive. She knows every little bit of paper that Hannah Arendt scribbled on. And what’s so great about this as a biography is that Hill has done something that biographers rarely do – she’s been highly selective in what she’s included . . . we have the benefit of a highly intelligent writer, selecting what she feels to be most important to bring out about Arendt . . . Here we have a very elegant story about Arendt’s life that brings out key moments and the most important themes in her thought." - Nigel Warburton, Five Books 'Best Philosophy Books of 2021'"This is a rich and well-balanced account of the life and times of one of the most fascinating figures of ancient Rome. Stephens presents Marcus Aurelius in all his human imperfection as he navigates the challenges of war, plague, insurrection, bereavement, and social unrest. A fascinating read for anyone interested in Roman history or Stoic philosophy." - John Sellars, Reader in the History of Philosophy, Royal Holloway, University of London, and editor of The Cambridge Companion to Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations"As a former hospice CEO, I recognise both the power and the limits of end-of-life care. Jonathan Romain’s compassionate case for assisted dying sets out beautifully the essential reform we need to offer terminally ill adults true dignity and choice." - Mark Jarman-Howe, former Chief Executive of St Helena Hospice"The best and most balanced account of the assisted dying debate. It favours assisted dying in a way that addresses all its aspects. And it’s very moving as it describes the ways a death may be experienced and marked. It is truly a brilliant, insightful book." - Charlie Falconer, former Lord Chancellor and Justice Secretary"As a former hospice CEO, I recognise both the power and the limits of end-of-life care. Jonathan Romain’s compassionate case for assisted dying sets out beautifully the essential reform we need to offer terminally ill adults true dignity and choice." - Mark Jarman-Howe, former Chief Executive of St Helena Hospice"Drawing on his expertise as a scholar of Stoic philosophy, William O. Stephens has written a splendid assessment of Marcus Aurelius’ predicaments and achievements. I cannot imagine a more timely and sympathetic account of the Stoic emperor’s humanity." - A. A. Long, author of Hellenistic Philosophy and Stoic Studies"The stated aim of Samantha Rose Hill’s new Arendt biography, a slim installment in Reaktion Books’s Critical Lives series, is to introduce this perennially relevant thinker to new readers . . . A brief primer on her life and thinking is timely, given the resurgence of interest . . . While the aim of this biography might be to serve as a brief, lively introduction to Arendt, Hill accomplishes something richer. In introducing us to Arendt's life and thought, what emerges is an example of thinking as a dynamic activity . . . Hill does not present Arendt as a banister to hold up our thinking. Rather, she aptly shows that Arendt is someone to read now because Arendt is someone worth thinking with." - Women’s Review of Books"Hill’s intellectual biography of Hannah Arendt is a timely look at one of the most impactful, if elusive, twentieth-century political thinkers . . . Hill’s Arendt is a thinker who moves easily from poetry to philosophy, from reflections on politics to an analysis of thinking itself . . . Hill writes lucidly about the key ideas and is particularly good on Arendt’s deep and lasting friendships. Arendt inspired love and loyalty among those close to her, and while her commitment always to "stop and think" led to sharp disagreements, it also resulted in meaningful, enduring relationships." - Michael S. Roth, Los Angeles Review of Books"In light of the potential pitfalls in reading Arendt’s work, Hill’s biography provides a vital service . . . Each chapter provides a lucid introduction to the key points of each work. For those interested in Arendt’s work – and anyone curious about political ideas should be – Rose Hill’s work is an excellent primer." - Spiked"As Hill points out in Hannah Arendt, even in works such as The Origins of Totalitarianism – surprise bestseller of the Trump era – the political is invariably brought back to the personal." - Prospect Magazine"Samantha Rose Hill's captivating new biography recounts Arendt's life and shows how she developed a rare capacity for independent thought and action which she retained even under the most difficult circumstances." - Metascience"In Hannah Arendt, Hill explains that Arendt was more interested in the process of thought – of reconciling ourselves to the world so that we can properly deal with it – than in articulating transcendent truths (which, according to her, did not exist). Along the way, Hill illuminates a warmer, more personal side of Arendt than we’ve seen in op-eds and think pieces over the past few years. It’s an image that complicates the idea of Arendt as an unsentimental thinker, which I came to know during my time in academic philosophy. I asked Hill to share some of the images she looked to in crafting her portrait of Arendt, revealing a person who did not believe in progress and was not a utopian thinker, but wrote impassioned poetry and loved to shop." - Guernica Magazine"Hannah Arendt offers an extraordinarily readable 210 pages, combining sharp analysis with concise and precise summary of Arendt’s life and works. Twelve of the twenty chapters are named for individual article or book publications by Arendt, and the other eight are: Inner Awakening, Turn Towards Politics, Internment, State of Emergency, Transition, Friendship, Reconciliation, and Storytelling. Hill wields such a thorough knowledge of available details, quotations, and sources regarding Arendt that she chooses the most engaging, thought-provoking ones and integrates them into her prose . . . Her biography blends sophisticated philosophy, productive historical context, and ‘Easter eggs’ of human-interest story" - Society for US Intellectual History"Blending biographical detail, sharp commentary and personal correspondence, Hill’s focused and fast-paced book contextualises Arendt’s major works by exploring the experiences which shaped the contours of her thought, engaging with a figure who continues to be widely read and debated as a guide to understanding contemporary political conditions." - The Marx and Philosophy Review of Books"Hill’s book is an informative and coherent narrative of Arendt’s life and key ideas . . . As a brief biography, Hill’s book does its job admirably." - Joseph D. O’Neil, The German Quarterly"This book could hardly appear more opportunely. Arendt’s way of thinking, though original to the point of being difficult to follow, appeals to an increasing number of men and women who question the meaning of their lives in the world we share. Arendt’s own writings and the books and essays analyzing them may seem exhaustive, yet Hill’s work does something new: without simplifying Arendt’s thinking, she opens it to contemporary readers who, in the darkness of our times, will find a friend, a woman, who lived through the darkest of all times." - Jerome Kohn, trustee of the Hannah Arendt Bluecher Literary Trust