Consciousness And Society

H. Stuart Hughes accepted a difficult job when he tried to write what has understandably become a classic history of social ideas about the generation which came to intellectual maturity between 1890 and 1930. Published in 1958, the discussions of the major philosophical and social theories of Max Weber, Sigmund Freud, and Emile Durkheim (among others) are explained, and the impact of these theoretical giants on one another is masterfully undertaken. Readers interested in the intellectual powerhouses of this time period are encouraged to read the history. The weakness of the book, however, lies in what Hughes failed to tell us. Maintaining what he contended was a "high" rather than a "low" discussion of this pivotal period of history, he chose only to speak of German, French, and Italian intellectuals, leaving out the contributions of the British, American, Spanish, Russian, or Scandinavian thinkers. He also deliberately chose to limit explanations about or comments on some pretty critical historical events -- like the Russian Revolution and World War I. And while he spent much time talking of positivism, rationalism, socialism, etc., there is little or no mention of fascism, nationalism, imperialism, industrialism, and other "isms" that figure powerfully into this time period.