Politics is About Power | Bonus Episode

Reading Hannah Arendt with Roger Berkowitz

This bonus episode explores the concept of power and control in the context of the American political system. Host Roger Berkowitz argues that the Arendtian perspective on politics is not abstract - we see it in our world today. He discusses the tension between elites and the working class in American history, drawing on the work of Hannah Arendt and historian Arthur Schlesinger Jr. He argues that while both major parties in the US are using Jacksonian rhetoric, they are neglecting the core principle of American republicanism: the dispersion of power to prevent any one group from controlling the state. Roger asserts that Hannah Arendt believed that a strong central government is dangerous and that freedom thrives in a system with multiple power centers.

We are beginning a new book: Between Past and Future, which describes the perplexing crises modern society faces as a result of the loss of meaning of the traditional key words of politics: justice, reason, responsibility, virtue, and glory. Through a series of eight exercises, Hannah Arendt shows how we can redistill the vital essence of these concepts and use them to regain a frame of reference for the future. Hannah Arendt Center members have exclusive access to the Virtual Reading Group (VRG) weekly meeting, upon which this podcast is based. Members have the opportunity to ask Roger questions about the text, and to engage with fellow thinkers about Arendt's ideas. Become a member and join the VRG!

ABOUT:

Produced by the Hannah Arendt Center at Bard College, this podcast offers close readings of Arendt's books alongside engaging interviews and thought-provoking conversations. Released weekly, each episode provides listeners with a deeper understanding of Arendt's philosophy and its relevance to contemporary issues. Available on all major podcast platforms, listeners join us on a captivating intellectual journey through the mind of Hannah Arendt.

New episodes every Friday morning! Join Roger Berkowitz, Founder and Academic Director of the Hannah Arendt Center for Politics and Humanities at Bard College, as he discusses the works of German Jewish political theorist Hannah Arendt (1906-1975).

THE HANNAH ARENDT CENTER:

The Hannah Arendt Center provides an intellectual space for passionate, uncensored, and nonpartisan thinking that reframes and deepens the fundamental questions facing our nation and our world. Become a member and enjoy several benefits including access to our virtual reading group that takes place every Friday: https://hac.bard.edu/membership/

More information can be found on our website: https://hac.bard.edu/ Follow us on twitter https://twitter.com/arendt_center and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hannaharendtcenteratbard/

THE HOST:

Roger Berkowitz is the Founder and Academic Director of the Hannah Arendt Center at Bard College. He is the editor of The Perils of Invention: Lying, Technology, and the Human Condition, and co-editor of Thinking in Dark Times: Hannah Arendt on Ethics and Politics (2009), and Artifacts of Thinking: Reading Hannah Arendt’s Denktagebuch (2017). Berkowitz edits HA: The Journal of the Hannah Arendt Center and the weekly newsletter Amor Mundi. He is the winner of the 2019 Hannah Arendt Prize for Political Thought given by the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Germany.