A Herzen Reader

A Herzen Reader, Volume 1, offers a significant collection of one hundred essays and editorials by the radical Russian thinker Alexander Herzen. Published by Northwestern University Press, this literary collection presents Herzen's influential writings in English for the first time. Much of this material originally appeared in The Bell, a revolutionary newspaper that shaped political debates regarding the emancipation of the serfs and social reform in mid-nineteenth century Russia.

This volume of history and essays provides a detailed look at Russian intellectual life during the 1850s and 1860s. Through his characteristic irony, Herzen examines freedom of speech, socialism, and government corruption. These writings offer essential context for studying Russian and Soviet history, as well as the works of contemporaries like Fyodor Dostoevsky and Ivan Turgenev. A Herzen Reader, Volume 1, serves as a vital resource for students of political philosophy and Russian literature.