''Polemic'' was a British "Magazine of Philosophy, Psychology, and Aesthetics" published between 1945 and 1947, which aimed to be a general or non-specialist intellectual periodical.
''Absent Minds: Intellectuals in Britain'' by Stefan Collini Oxford University Press, 2006 , Edited by the ex-Communist

Humphrey Slater Humphrey Richard "Hugh" Slater (1906–1958) was an English author and painter. Born in Carlisle, Cumberland in 1906, he spent his early childhood in South Africa, where his father served in Military Intelligence in Pretoria, before returning to ...

, it was "sympathetic to science, hostile to the intellectual manifestations of romanticism, and markedly anti-Communist. Eight issues were published. The first, published as a book to get round the prohibition of new journals imposed by war-time paper rationing, included contributions by Henry Miller, Bertrand Russell,

A. J. Ayer Sir Alfred Jules "Freddie" Ayer (; 29 October 1910 – 27 June 1989), usually cited as A. J. Ayer, was an English philosopher known for his promotion of logical positivism, particularly in his books '' Language, Truth, and Logic'' (1936) ...

, Stephen Spender, Stephen Glover,

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...

C. E. M. Joad Cyril Edwin Mitchinson Joad (12 August 1891 – 9 April 1953) was an English philosopher and broadcasting personality. He appeared on ''The Brains Trust'', a BBC Radio wartime discussion programme. He popularised philosophy and became a celebri ...

and Rupert Crawshay-Williams. Orwell contributed five essays over the life of the magazine and Russell and Ayer contributed four each. Other contributors included Philip Toynbee, Hugh Trevor-Roper,

Dylan Thomas Dylan Marlais Thomas (27 October 1914 – 9 November 1953) was a Welsh poet and writer whose works include the poems "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "And death shall have no dominion", as well as the "play for voices" ''Under ...

Diana Witherby Diana most commonly refers to: * Diana (name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Diana (mythology), ancient Roman goddess of the hunt and wild animals; later associated with the Moon * Diana, Princess of Wales (1961–1997) ...

Stuart Hampshire Sir Stuart Newton Hampshire (1 October 1914 – 13 June 2004) was an English philosopher, literary critic and university administrator. He was one of the antirationalist Oxford thinkers who gave a new direction to moral and political thought ...

, Geoffrey Grigson, Ben Nicholson, Adrian Stokes,

J. D. Bernal John Desmond Bernal (; 10 May 1901 – 15 September 1971) was an Irish scientist who pioneered the use of X-ray crystallography in molecular biology. He published extensively on the history of science. In addition, Bernal wrote popular boo ...

C. H. Waddington Conrad Hal Waddington (8 November 1905 – 26 September 1975) was a British developmental biologist, paleontologist, geneticist, embryologist and philosopher who laid the foundations for systems biology, epigenetics, and evolutionary developme ...

and

John Wisdom Arthur John Terence Dibben Wisdom (12 September 1904, in Leyton, Essex – 9 December 1993, in Cambridge), usually cited as John Wisdom, was a leading British philosopher considered to be an ordinary language philosopher, a philosopher of mind an ...

Orwell's essays

Notes on Nationalism Notes on Nationalism is an essay completed in May 1945 by George Orwell and published in the first issue of the British magazine ''Polemic'' in October 1945. Political theorist Gregory Claeys insists it is a key source for understanding Orwell's ...

" (''Polemic'', No 1 - October 1945 - written in May 1945)Orwell, Sonia and Angus, Ian (eds.). ''The Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters of George Orwell Volume 3: As I Please (1943-1945)'' (Penguin) *"

The Prevention of Literature "The Prevention of Literature" is an essay published in 1946 by the English author George Orwell. The essay is concerned with freedom of thought and expression, particularly in an environment where the prevailing orthodoxy in left-wing intellectua ...

" (''Polemic'', No 2 - January 1946)Orwell, Sonia and Angus, Ian (eds.). ''The Collected Essays, Journalism and Letters of George Orwell Volume 4: In Front of Your Nose (1945-1950)'' (Penguin) *" Second Thoughts on James Burnham" (''Polemic'', No 3 - May 1946) *" Politics vs. Literature: An Examination of Gulliver's Travels" (''Polemic'', No 5 - September–October 1946) *"

Lear, Tolstoy and the Fool "Lear, Tolstoy and the Fool" is an essay by George Orwell. It was inspired by a critical essay on Shakespeare by Leo Tolstoy, and was first published in ''Polemic'' No. 7 (March 1947). Orwell, Sonia and Angus, Ian (eds.). ''The Collected Essays ...

" (''Polemic'', No 7) *Orwell also contributed an (unsigned) editorial to (''Polemic'', No 3 - May 1946)

Ayer's essays

* 'Deistic Fallacies', ''Polemic'', no. 1. (1945) * 'Secret Session' (on J.-P. Sartre), ''Polemic'', no. 2, pp. 60~3. (1945) * 'Freedom and Necessity', ''Polemic'', no. 5, pp. 36~44. (1946) (repr. in '' Philosophical Essays'', 1954] * "The Claims of Philosophy", in ''Polemic'', no. 7, pp. 18~33 (1947) epr. in ''iarchive:reflectionsonour0000unse_h1y2/page/51/mode/1up, Reflections on Our Age,'' 1949)

References

Defunct magazines published in the United Kingdom Magazines established in 1945 Magazines disestablished in 1947 {{UK-mag-stub

Orwell's essays

Ayer's essays

See also

References