War and the Intellectuals: Collected Essays, 1915-1919

by Randolph Bourne, Carl Resek (Editor)

Although he died at the age of thirty-two, Randolph Bourne (1886-1918) left a body of writing on politics, culture, and literature that made him one of the most influential public intellectuals of the twentieth century, and a hero of the American left. The twenty-eight essays of this volume--among them, War and the Intellectuals, the analysis of the warfare state that made Bourne the foremost critic of American entry into World War 1, and Trans-National America, his manifesto for cultural pluralism in America--show Bourne at his most passionate and incisive as they trace his search for the true wellsprings of nationalism and American culture.

Genres: Nonfiction, Philosophy, War, Essays, Politics, History, Criticism

208 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1999

About the author

Randolph Silliman Bourne was a progressive writer and "leftist intellectual", and a graduate of Columbia University. Bourne is best known for his essays, especially his unfinished work "The State," discovered after his death.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randolp...

Reviews

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bourne is a really important and understudied critic of American pragmatism. He only became a critic of pragmatism in the last 18 months of his tragically short life; prior to that he was something of a envangelist for Dewey's political and social ideas. His turn came about on the issue of war; he was appalled to see his mentor allow his pragmatic optimism to lead him to support America's entry into WWI. This got him rethinking the political foundations, or lack thereof, of pragmatism is some very interesting ways. The essays on multiculturalism in this collection are good, and well ahead of their time, but the real prize is the lengthy, posthumously published anti-war essay "The State". As we slowly wake up from the Bush hangover, this essay seems more relevant than ever.

[Maya · Rating 5 out of 5]

so fire

[Cayden Bartel · Rating 2 out of 5]

War and the Intellectuals, in a tiresome, repetitive, and half-hearted approach to argument, reveals its intent and poses questions for discussion in a manner I found little more than tedious. The late Randolph Bourne, one of the “great” analytical minds of the early modern era, ropes his readers in with promises of intelligent discussion of taboo societal issues before utilizing his platform as a slogfest ranting ground. War and the Intellectuals rarely manages to keep one’s without one paragraph after another regarding the abandonment of social sense. What Bourne’s close-minded view of the world contributes to is far less a “conservative” view of the world and akin to a hateful fearmongering of foreign ideas. On one hand, I was entranced by the fanciful language that comes standard with the literature of this era. Initially, these provocative ideas accompanied by such language drew me in with high hopes, however, it soon becomes apparent that Bourne’s writing style remains the only saving grace of this body of work. Modern readers of War and the Intellectuals will feel isolated by the downright putrid ideas concocted by men of the past, for example, an essay-long spout denouncing socialist viewpoints. While one may process and interpret each passage the way they see fit, I simply could not keep up with the wearisome tangents from the close-minded Randolph Bourne. For all these reasons, I woefully warn against delving deeper into War and the Intellectuals, apart from those looking to be shocked at the disgustingly idiosyncratic morals of a writer from time long past.

[Marco Pavan · Rating 5 out of 5]

No matter how much time passes, Randolph Bourne writing will continue to feel contemporary.

[Jacquie Traenkle · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The ironist is ironical not because he does not care, but because he cares too much.”

[Jeffrey Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly fantastic collection of critical essays regarding America's entry into World War 1, this work captures the key debates and issues of the period. Borne was a beast. It is a shame our nation lost such a voice far too early.

[Ryan Dudzinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, sometimes America is really, really stupid. Randolph Bourne will explain why. Remember kids, "War is the health of the state."