Bertrand Russell’s Politics

This chapter examines Bertrand Russell's politics. focusing on three things. First, the Russell whom one might describe as the heir of 1688 and the Whig Revolution was a considerably useful liberal influence. Second, there was about Russell an antipolitical streak. This was not 1688 but 1968, when there was a demand for new visions, for the total reconstruction of everything. In this vein, Russell did not contribute to politics. And lastly, there was the side of Russell that is impossible not to like—he did wonderfully well, not just in his popular work but also in his more academic writing. The chapter discusses the discrepancy between Russell's violent antipathy to the Vietnam War and the philosophical underpinnings of that antipathy. It also explores Russell's liberalism, anti-Americanism, and anti-imperialism, along with his views on Marxism and pacifism.