Isaiah Berlin, A History of Freedom, Russia

The first Russian-language edition of Isaiah Berlin's works. For a long time, the literary legacy of the English liberal thinker Isaiah Berlin (1909–1997) remained unknown in Russia. This book explores the history and culture of Russia and the USSR in the context of freethinking. The text is based on the philosopher's memoirs of his visit to the USSR and meetings with Anna Akhmatova and Boris Pasternak. Berlin discusses the birth of the Russian intelligentsia, the mission of enlightenment in the works of writers I.S. Turgenev, L.N. Tolstov, and N.A. Nekrasov, the emergence of the Russian Narodniki (Populist) society, the period of oblivion of Russian culture, and the emergence of a new Soviet culture. He also discusses the Soviet intelligentsia and the goals of literature and art under Stalin.