The Human Condition, a remarkably original work brimming with unexpected revelatory thoughts and conclusions, is today, in many ways, even more interesting than when it first appeared in 1958.

Hannah Arendt examines the state of modern humanity through the lens of our capacity to act. The problems that Arendt identified back then – the diminishment of human action and political freedom and the paradox that, while human powers are increasing through the progress of the natural and social sciences, we are less able to control the consequences of our actions – remain unresolved.

This new edition includes an introduction by Margaret Canovan, a distinguished scholar of Arendt, who incisively analyzes the book's arguments and explores its significance today.

The Human Condition, a classic work of political and social theory, has proven timeless and always relevant.

“There are times when a book gives me the impression that it has been written especially for me... The Human Condition belongs to that small and select group.” W. H. Auden

“The combination of tremendous intellectual power and common sense in all its glory makes Arendt's thoughts and conclusions about history and politics both stunning and simultaneously obvious.” Mary McCarthy, The New Yorker