Murray N. Rothbard vs. the Philosophers - Ludwig von Mises Institute

MURRAY N. ROTHBARD VS. THE PHILOSOPHERS: UNPUBLISHED WRITINGS
viii ON HAYEK, MISES, STRAUSS, AND POLYANI
into Italian, in 2005. The present book is the first publication
of these papers in their original English.
Besides the papers, the book includes Professor Modugno’s
scholarly introduction, which stresses Rothbard’s
relations to the thought of Leo Strauss and Friedrich von
Hayek. In addition, she has provided detailed explanatory
notes to the selections.
Even experienced students of Rothbard will learn much
from this book. His criticism of social Darwinism in the first
selection is of classic stature; and he makes a searching criticism
of Hayek on the rule of law. In his discussion of Caroline
Robbins, his amazing depth of scholarship is present
in full force. Although Robbins had just completed the first
comprehensive study of British classical liberalism in the
eighteenth century, Rothbard was able to correct and add to
her findings.
The nine selections published here form only a small
sample of the unpublished papers; future books will make
many more of them available. But Roberta Modugno was
there first.
DAVID GORDON
Ludwig von Mises Institute