Hannah Arendt was one of the foremost thinkers and political commentators of this century. She addressed some of the most difficult and contentious issues of modern times and bestowed upon the modern world her original thought and unrelenting optimism. She insisted that freedom and autonomy, indispensable for human existence itself, are only attainable within an authentic political life. The years since Hannah Arendt's death have seen an intensification of interest in her both as a thinker and as figure of her times. This interdisciplinary collection of superbly crafted essays, by both young and established scholars, offers a series of engagements with Arendt at 'eye-level' in a series of debates, conversations or arguments across the full range of her major intellectual interests. It seeks, in a way that no other account has attempted, to outline and investigate the unity of Arendt's life and work. This is a powerful book that allows the reader to reassemble the various facets of Arendt's writing and personality into one rich mosaic of ideas and issues.