Aron’s legacy

Abstract

When Raymond Aron died suddenly in October of 1983, there was an outpouring of grief and praise. Aron was highly regarded by philosophers, sociologists, political thinkers, and many others in a variety of disciplines. Newspapers and journals were filled with his obituaries and most of the authors lauded Aron for his work. Even allowing for some hyperbole, it was understood that the world had lost a great thinker. Since then, Aron’s reputation has suffered to some degree; however, there have been a number of scholars who have written about him and their estimation of Aron is understandably high. Finally, there have been a few additions to the literature on Aron, and those indicate a further resurgence of interest in his thinking. Aron was one of the leading sociologists and political philosophers of the twentieth century; his legacy deserves to live on and his writings deserve to be read.