An edition of Isaiah Berlin's classic of liberalism, "Four Essays on Liberty", this book incorporates a fifth essay, and adds further pieces on the same topic, so that Berlin's principal statements on liberty are available together. This book throws biographical light on Berlin's preoccupation with liberty in appendices drawn from his writings.

`A magnificent and indispensable volume: the best introduction to the most important and enduring of Berlin's ideas.' John Gray `For anyone wishing to have the essence of Berlin's thinking, Liberty is the volume to have.' John Banville, Irish Times `'Liberty not only offers a comprehensive overview of Isaiah Berlin's main topics and ideas, but also enables us to understand the development and relevance of those ideas in the context of his personality.' Steffen Gross, Dialektik `Practically every paragraph introduces us to half a dozen new ideas and as many thinkers - the landscape flashes past, peopled with familiar and unfamiliar people, all arguing incessantly. It is all a very long way from the austere eloquence of Mill's marvellous essay On Liberty, with which this collection's title seems to challenge comparison; but it is a measure of the stature of these essays that they stand such a comparison.' Alan Ryan, New Society `These famous essays ... are informed by that radical humanism, in the truest sense of that impoverished word, which has attached Sir Isaiah so closely to such nineteenth century figures as Herzen and Mill ...' Philip Toynbee, Observer

An expanded edition of what Isaiah Berlin himself regarded as his most important book Adds a fifth essay, 'From Hope and Fear set Free', which Berlin had hoped to include in the original edition Also included are three of Berlin's other writings on liberty - 'Liberty', 'The Birth of Greek Individualism', and 'Final Retrospect' - and three autobiographical pieces - 'The Purpose Justifies the Ways', 'A Letter to George Kennan' (previously unpublished), and 'Notes on Prejudice' A critical bibliography by Ian Harris brings together the growing mass of literature on Berlin's work with brief critical commentary An extended preface by the editor gives a fascinating insight into the struggle behind the creation of this highly influential work

Isaiah Berlin was a Fellow of All Souls, New College and Professor of Social and Political Theory and founding President of Wolfson College. He also held the Presidency of the British Academy. He died in 1997. Henry Hardy (ed) is a Fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford and is one of Isaiah Berlin's Literary Trustees. He has edited several other books by Berlin, and is currently preparing his letters and his remaining unpublished writings for publication.

An expanded edition of what Isaiah Berlin himself regarded as his most important book Adds a fifth essay, 'From Hope and Fear set Free', which Berlin had hoped to include in the original edition Also included are three of Berlin's other writings on liberty - 'Liberty', 'The Birth of Greek Individualism', and 'Final Retrospect' - and three autobiographical pieces - 'The Purpose Justifies the Ways', 'A Letter to George Kennan' (previously unpublished), and 'Notes on Prejudice' A critical bibliography by Ian Harris brings together the growing mass of literature on Berlin's work with brief critical commentary An extended preface by the editor gives a fascinating insight into the struggle behind the creation of this highly influential work