Do You Think Like a Fox or a Hedgehog? | Book Insights on The Hedgehog and the Fox by Isaiah Berlin

*In later life, Isaiah Berlin regretted calling his essay The Hedgehog and the Fox, but it’s an undoubtedly intriguing title.  *While it investigates the two ways of approaching knowledge, that of the fox who ‘knows many things’ and the hedgehog who ‘knows one big thing’ – outlining what would become a key principle of modern cultural theory – the essay’s real subject matter is the Leo Tolstoy’s view of history.  *Berlin had studied his fellow Russian Tolstoy’s work (he had also translated Russian literature), and viewed Tolstoy as a first-rate philosopher. In analysing War and Peace, and keeping in mind the aforementioned wildlife imagery, he reveals the fundamental tension between the two approaches.  *This tension is at the heart of Tolstoy’s philosophy: the hedgehog-like yearning for a unifying Truth despite the fox-like acceptance of everyday life in all its infinite and unknowable variety. Theme 1: Folly & Conceit of History - 0:29 Theme 2: Free Will & Rationality - 7:19 Theme 3: Two Levels of Reality - 15:21 Like what you hear? Be sure to like & subscribe to support this podcast! Also leave a comment and let us know your thoughts on the episode. You can also get a free weekly email about the Book Insight of the week. Subscribe at memod.com/insights Want quick save-able, share-able bullet points on this book? Check out the Memo: https://memod.com/jashdholani/the-tragedy-of-tolstoy-3254 HEAR THE FULL INTERVIEWS MENTIONED IN TODAYS' EPISODE HERE: “Freedom and Its Betrayal: Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1952).” Freedom and Its Betrayal: Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1952) | University of Oxford Podcasts - Audio and Video Lectures, podcasts.ox.ac.uk/freedom-and-its-betrayal-jean-jacques-rousseau-1952. Intellect, Manufacturing. “Isaiah Berlin Interview on Why Philosophy Matters (1976).” YouTube, YouTube, 16 Sept. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=vib2rqJKS08 Full Title: The Hedgehog and the Fox: An Essay on Tolstoy's View of History Year of Publication: 1953 Book Author: Isaiah Berlin To purchase the complete edition of this book click here: https://tinyurl.com/3mmj62d3 Book Insight Writer: Tom Butler-Bowden Editor: Tom Butler-Bowden Producer: Daniel Gonzalez Production Manager: Karin Richey Curator: Tom Butler-Bowden Narrator: Elliott Schiff