Michael Oakeshott: Notebooks, 1922-86 (Issue 6) (Michael Oakeshott Selected Writings) - Softcover

"Michael Oakeshott's Notebooks are an astonishing work, which must force an enlargement of his already very high reputation. I cannot remember reading a more exhilarating counterblast to the shoddy utilitarianism which disfigures so much scholarship... Open the 550 pages of this new book anywhere, and you will come across something arresting about life, love, liberty, politics, poetry, philosophy, history, morals, education, aesthetics and many other subjects."

"Superbly edited by Luke O'Sullivan... Notebooks is a revelation that sheds fresh light on Oakeshott's entire oeuvre. It shows that he had a unique penchant for introspection, irony, self-doubt, hyperbole, and indeed a certain degree of narcissism... Notebooks not only offers a unique window into Oakeshott's soul, but also allows us to contemplate his impressive and unassuming erudition..."

"[S]omething quite astounding in the exploding area of Oakeshott studies: the publication of Oakeshott's decades of private writing, Notebooks, 1922-1986."

"These Notebooks are extraordinary, absolutely brilliant and gripping."

"Oakeshott -- a philosopher who ranks with Sartre, Kierkegaard and Heidegger... [His] philosophical eccentricity was matched by eccentricity in many other aspects of his life... The Notebooks bring out this quality, letting us into some of the smouldering passions that lay behind the extreme delicacy of his conversational manner. There is much reflection on God, and on the history of man's relation to the numinous in nature... As well as bringing out the romance in Oakeshott's soul, the Notebooks illustrate very clearly the persistent themes of his mind and the breadth of his interests."

"Particularly interesting is O'Sullivan's account of Oakeshott's religious ideas which he expressed in these notebooks more openly than in his published writings... All students of Oakeshott's work owe him a debt of gratitude for making this material accessible."

"For those interested in Oakeshott, this book will be valuable... The book's layout is clear, with each notebook presented separately and each note numbered. These can range from one line to a couple of pages in length. The book offers an interesting corollary to the thinker's published work, giving us a 'behind the scenes' glimpse into his mind... Intriguing too are the 'Belle Dame' notebooks. In them, a young Oakeshott speaks of women he is in love with and discusses the various aspects of love and attraction."

"As these Notebooks show, [Oakeshott] managed to keep himself almost entirely free of 'merely parasitic opinion' for his entire working life, some 60 years. More than that: they show how deeply he was imbued in 'the best that has been thought and said'. They are profound, provocative, moving and endlessly quotable. And they cast further light on his life and thought, and on the human predicament."

"A selection from forty-four notebooks composed over a period of more than sixty years, this book is a treasure-trove of thoughts, collected from a lifetime's intellectual wandering. For anyone interested in Oakeshott the man, or the development of his work, it will be invaluable."

From the 1920s to the 1980s Oakeshott filled dozens of notebooks with his private reflections, both personal and intellectual. Their contents range from aphorisms to miniature essays, forming a unique record of his intellectual trajectory over his entire career. This volume makes them accessible in print for the first time, drawing together a host of his previously inaccessible observations on politics, philosophy, art, education, and much else besides. Religion in particular emerges as an ongoing concern for him in a way that is not visible from his published works.

The notebooks also provide a unique source of insight into Oakeshott's musings on life, thanks to the hitherto unsuspected existence of the series of 'Belle Dame' notebooks that were written in the late 1920s and early 1930s but which only came to light two decades after his death. At the same period in which he was developing the concepts that would form Experience and its Modes, Oakeshott’s personal life lead him to reflect extensively on love and death, themes that highlight his enduring romantic affinities.

Accompanied by an original editorial introduction, the volume allows readers to see for themselves exactly which works Oakeshott used in compiling each of his notebooks, providing a much clearer record of his intellectual influences than has previously been available. It will be an essential addition to the library of his works for all those interested in his ideas.