Intellectuals and Society (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780465025220)

The influence of intellectuals is not only greater than in previous eras but also takes a very different form from that envisioned by those like Machiavelli and others who have wanted to directly influence rulers. It has not been by shaping the opinions or directing the actions of the holders of power that modern intellectuals have most influenced the course of events, but by shaping public opinion in ways that affect the actions of power holders in democratic societies, whether or not those power holders accept the general vision or the particular policies favored by intellectuals. Even government leaders with disdain or contempt for intellectuals have had to bend to the climate of opinion shaped by those intellectuals.

Intellectuals and Society not only examines the track record of intellectuals in the things they have advocated but also analyzes the incentives and constraints under which their views and visions have emerged. One of the most surprising aspects of this study is how often intellectuals have been proved not only wrong, but grossly and disastrously wrong in their prescriptions for the ills of society -- and how little their views have changed in response to empirical evidence of the disasters entailed by those views.

Author: Thomas Sowell
ISBN-10: 0465025226
ISBN-13: 9780465025220
Publisher: Basic Books
Language: English
Published: 03/06/2012
Pages: 680
Format: Paperback
Weight: 1.55lbs
Size: 9.20h x 5.90w x 1.90d

Review Citation(s):
Choice 10/01/2012