Public Intellectuals

by Posner, Richard A.

• ISBN13: 9780674006331
• ISBN10: 067400633X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-01-21
• Publisher: Harvard Univ Pr

Summary

In this timely book, the first comprehensive study of the modern American public intellectual--that individual who speaks to the public on issues of political or ideological moment--Richard Posner charts the decline of a venerable institution that included worthies from Socrates to John Dewey. With the rapid growth of the media in recent years, highly visible forums for discussion have multiplied, while greater academic specialization has yielded a growing number of narrowly trained scholars. Posner tracks these two trends to their inevitable intersection: a proliferation of modern academics commenting on topics outside their ken. The resulting scene--one of off-the-cuff pronouncements, erroneous predictions, and ignorant policy proposals--compares poorly with the performance of earlier public intellectuals, largely nonacademics whose erudition and breadth of knowledge were well suited to public discourse. Leveling a balanced attack on liberal and conservative pundits alike, Posner describes the styles and genres, constraints and incentives, of the activity of public intellectuals. He identifies a market for this activity--one with recognizable patterns and conventions but an absence of quality controls. And he offers modest proposals for improving the performance of this market--and the quality of public discussion in America today.

Author Biography

Richard A. Posner is a Judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(16)
Part One: General Theoretical and Empirical Analysis
Setting the Stage	17	(24)
The Market for Public Intellectuals	41	(42)
Care and Insight	83	(45)
Prediction and Influence	128	(39)
More Public, Less Intellectual	167	(56)
Part Two: Genre Studies
The Literary Critic as Public Intellectual	223	(24)
Political Satire	247	(34)
The Jeremiah School	281	(39)
The Public Philosopher	320	(39)
The Public Intellectual and the Law	359