Philosophy · Science · Literature · 1906–1975
Born: 14 October 1906 · Died: 4 December 1975 · Age at death: 69
Hannah Arendt died aged 69. She was born on 14 October 1906 and died on 4 December 1975.
German-American political theorist of The Origins of Totalitarianism who coined the phrase the banality of evil
Did you know?She coined the phrase "the banality of evil" while reporting on the trial of Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann in Jerusalem.
Hannah Arendt thought hard about the nature of evil. She studied philosophy in Germany with Martin Heidegger and Karl Jaspers. As a Jew, she fled the Nazis in 1933 and later reached the United States. The Origins of Totalitarianism examined how Nazism and Stalinism arose. Reporting on Adolf Eichmann's trial in Jerusalem, she described "the banality of evil". Her claim that great evil can come from thoughtless officials caused fierce debate. Her ideas still provoke.
Hannah Arendt (born Johanna Arendt; 14 October 1906 – 4 December 1975) was a German and American historian and philosopher. She was one of the most influential political theorists of the twentieth century.
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Profile
German-American political thinker, 1906–1975
Hannah Arendt was born in Linden, Hanover, on 14 October 1906.
She fled Nazi Germany in 1933.
The Origins of Totalitarianism appeared in 1951.
Eichmann in Jerusalem followed in 1963.
Career highlights
Did you know?She studied with Martin Heidegger.
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