An Historian's Life

Max Crawford and the Politics of Academic Freedom

Fay Anderson
Paperback
Added to basketCheckout →
Ships in 4-6 weeks
Other formats available
An Historian's Life

Published

18 April 2005

ISBN

9780522851533

Pages

410

Imprint

MUP Academic

An Historian's Life

Max Crawford and the Politics of Academic Freedom

Fay Anderson
Max Crawford was one of Australia's pre-eminent historians. As both a participant in and observer of many decisive episodes of the era; Europe in the midst of the Depression, America and Russia at the height of World War II, post-war reconstruction and the Cold War in Australia, Crawford was regarded as a radical; and outspoken defender of intellectual autonomy This biography considers Crawford as an historian and a public intellectual. It relates his experiences as a student at Sydney and Oxford, a struggling teacher during the Depression, as the head of the History School at the University of Melbourne, a diplomat in wartime Russia, and a Cold War victim and accuser. The study of Crawford's life provides insight into one man's experience in the midst of political turmoil and the limits of intellectual autonomy on Australian campuses, as well as the suspicion of liberal intellectuals in Australian public life, the…
Max Crawford was one of Australia's pre-eminent historians. As both a participant in and observer of many decisive episodes of the era; Europe in the midst of the Depression, America and Russia at the height of World War II, post-war reconstruction and the Cold War in Australia, Crawford was regarded as a radical; and outspoken defender of intellectual autonomy. This biography considers Crawford as an historian and a public intellectual. It relates his experiences as a student at Sydney and Oxford, a struggling teacher during the Depression, as the head of the History School at the University of Melbourne, a diplomat in wartime Russia, and a Cold War victim and accuser. The study of Crawford's life provides insight into one man's experience in the midst of political turmoil and the limits of intellectual autonomy on Australian campuses, as well as the suspicion of liberal intellectuals in Australian public life, the repression of academic radicals and ASIO's attempts to stifle dissident voices. Spanning his life (1906 -1991), Crawford's political and intellectual journey suggests the changing nature of Australian progressive liberalism and the precarious state of academic freedom.

Fay Anderson

Fay Anderson

Associate Professor Fay Anderson lectures in the School of Media, Film and Journalism at Monash University. She has published widely on media history, war journalism, genocide, photography and violence. Fay Anderson and Richard Trembath's book Witnesses to War: The History of Australian Conflict Reporting was published by MUP in 2011.

More

Paperback
Added to basketCheckout →
Ships in 4-6 weeks
Other formats available