Human Rights in the Twentieth Century

Reviews / Votes

'Human Rights in the Twentieth Century is a landmark in a field of supreme importance. It is enlightening and therefore disenchanting in the most constructive sense. It brings together a fine group of scholars, mainly historians, to provide historical perspective on a topic that is sorely lacking it and shows the contingency of the deployment of human rights as a political language, the varied roots of that language, and the diversity of objects that it can address.' Donald Bloxham, University of Edinburgh 'This is an outstanding collection of essays on various aspects of human rights history in the twentieth century. The essays cover a wide range topically - from the intellectual linealogy of the human rights concept to its relationship to states in specific circumstances - chronologically and geographically and are of uniformly high quality. They make exciting reading and together contribute enormously to helping understand one of the most vital and important - but hitherto insufficiently studied - developments in recent history.' Akira Iriye, Harvard University 'This is an impressive collection on a timely and important topic. Its strengths are considerable, including both stimulating synthetic 'think-pieces' on the changing meanings of 'human rights' and archivally based studies of how, and with what results, 'rights-talk' was mobilized by different groups and in different situations.' Susan Pedersen, Columbia University 'At long last we have a book that takes a critical approach to the history of human rights. Stefan-Ludwig Hoffmann has put together a stellar cast of historians whose topics range widely around the globe. His own introduction raises the scholarship on human rights to a new level. This is the book that scholars and practitioners will need to read and debate.' Eric D. Weitz, University of Minnesota 'This volume makes an invaluable contribution to the study of human rights by treating them historically, foregoing familiar triumphalist narratives about steady progress in favour of detailed examinations of the contingent usage of human rights as political language and instrument.' Johannes Paulmann, History Workshop Journal