This title represents the fruit of nearly 15 years of discussion - in person and by letter - between world-famous philosopher, Isaiah Berlin (1909-1997) and Dr. Beata Polonowska-Sygulska of Jagiellonian University in Cracow, Poland. Berlin always felt a special affinity for scholars of Eastern Europe, and the unique chemistry between him and his younger enthusiast for his ideas yielded a remarkable body of material, most of it hitherto unpublished. The book sheds considerable light on Berlin's thinking, clarifying some of the central themes of his philosophy. The book concludes with a collection of articles on Berlin's thoughts by Dr. Polanowska-Sygulska, stemming from her long-standing immersion in his work. Berlin himself thoroughly discussed three of these with the author and approved their publication. This fascinating collection of letters, conversations and articles will be of the greatest interest to students and scholars of one of the 20th century's most renowned intellectuals.

大哲伯林和波蘭女學者長達15年的討論，內容涉及伯林思想的許多重大問題，如自由觀和文化多元論，兼及他對童年和青年時代的迴憶。在一封緻這位女學者的信中，伯林寫道：“我此前從未如此清晰地錶達自己，我確信。”伯林文集的編輯亨利·哈代為本書寫瞭序言。