The Human Condition.

ARENDT, Hannah.

Item Number: 145631

Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1958.

First edition of Arendt’s penetrating examination of the human condition. Octavo, original half cloth. Signed and dated by the author on the front free endpaper, “Hannah Arendt April 1965.” Very good in a good dust jacket with toning to the spine and chipping to the front panel and spine extremities. Housed in a custom half morocco clamshell box by the Harcourt Bindery. Founded over a century ago in 1900, The Harcourt Bindery is the oldest and largest traditional bindery in America exclusively devoted to fine traditional leather bookbinding by hand. Books signed by Arendt are rare.

German-American historian, philosopher, and political theorist Hannah Arendt is "widely recognized as one of the most original and influential political thinkers of the 20th century." Published in 1958, Arendt's seminal work, The Human Condition, represented a pivotal intervention in philosophical discourse, providing a penetrating examination of the fundamental nature of human existence and its implications for the organization of societies. Arendt's inquiry pivots around the centrality of action, plurality, and the public sphere in delineating the contours of human identity and political engagement. By challenging orthodox conceptions of politics, she underscores the pivotal role of human agency in forging collective experiences and imbuing them with significance. Through a nuanced analysis of labor, work, and action, Arendt articulates a rich framework for comprehending the multifaceted dimensions of human activity and its profound implications for the cultivation of genuine freedom and societal resilience.