"The goal of philosophy is always the same, to assist men to understand themselves and thus to operate in the open, not wildly in the dark."--Isaiah Berlin</p>

This volume of Isaiah Berlin's essays presents the sweep of his contributions to philosophy from his early participation in the debates surrounding logical positivism to his later work, which more evidently reflects his life-long interest in political theory, the history of ideas, and the philosophy of history. Here Berlin describes his view of the nature of philosophy, and of its main task: to uncover the various models and presuppositions--the concepts and categories--that men bring to their existence and that help form that existence. Throughout, his writing is informed by his intense consciousness of the plurality of values, the nature of historical understanding, and of the fragility of human freedom in the face of rigid dogma.</p>

以赛亚·伯林爵士（Sir Isaiah Berlin，1909—1997）

英国哲学家、观念史学家、20世纪著名自由主义知识分子。生于俄国犹太家庭，童年目睹俄国革命，1921年随父母前往英国。1928年进入牛津大学攻读哲学，1939年借撰写《卡尔·马克思》的契机转向观念史研究。1957年就职牛津大学社会与政治理论教授，发表具有开创性的“两种自由概念”演说，同年获封爵士。参与创办牛津大学沃尔夫森学院并出任首任院长。作为杰出的观念史学家和学科主要奠基人，先后被授予耶路撒冷文学奖和伊拉斯谟奖。