LASKI HAROLD JOSEPH 1893 - 1950PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE

Scope and Content

Press cuttings concerning the economic aspects of World War II collected byLaski, arranged chronologically from 16th December 1930 to 8th March 1940.

Administrative / Biographical History

Harold Joseph Laski 1893 - 1950

Harold Laski was born in Manchester, the son of a wealthy Jewishcotton merchant. He was educated at Manchester Grammar school. He studiedeugenics at University College London in the first half of 1911 and laterthat year entered New College Oxford with a history exhibition and graduatedin 1914 with first class honours in modern history. As he was rejected fromthe army on medical grounds he accepted a lectureship at McGill University inMontreal where he remained until 1916. He then joined the staff at HarvardUniversity where he formed a close friendship with Oliver Wendell HolmesJunior (1841 - 1935), a judge in the United States Supreme Court. Laski left in1920 to join the London School of Economics, where he became professor ofpolitical economics in 1926, a post which he retained until his death. Hispolitical theories were mainly concerned with sovereignty, the nature of theState and social change. Laski was on the executive committee of the FabianSociety, 1921 - 1936, and the Labour Party, 1936 - 1949.

His publications include:

  • The Problem of Sovereignty (1917)
  • Authority in the Modern State (1919)
  • Political Thought from Locke to Bentham (1920)
  • Foundations of Sovereignty (1921)
  • Letters of Burke(ed.) (1922)
  • The Defence of Liberty against Tyrants (ed.) (1924)
  • Autobiography of JS Mill (ed.) (1924)
  • A Grammer of Politics (1925)
  • Communism (1927)
  • Liberty in the Modern State (1930)
  • The Dangers of Obedience (1930)
  • An Introduction to Politics (1931)
  • Studies in Law and Politics (1932)
  • The Crisis and the Constitution (1932)
  • Democracy in Crisis (1933)
  • The State in Theory and Practice (1935)
  • The Rise of European Liberalism (1936)
  • Parliamentary Government in England (1938)
  • The American Presidency (1940)
  • Reflections on the Revolution of Our Time (1943)
  • Faith, Reason, Civilisation (1944)
  • The American Democracy (1948)

Arrangement

The cuttings have been stapled together and placed in a file.

Access Information

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Acquisition Information

Laski, H.J (executorsof)

Other Finding Aids

No further listrequired.

Conditions Governing Use

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