Intellectuals: Roles and Reckonings | K.J. Ratnam

“It is an important quality of the intellectual mind that it remains open to doubt and is tolerant, even welcoming, of alternative views and explanations. This is a strength, not a weakness. Those who think only dogmatically and ideologically, on the other hand, entertain few if any doubts and regard themselves as being invariably right. This is a weakness, not a strength.”

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In this new edition of 'Intellectuals, Creativity and Intolerance', the trials and tribulations of the intellectual in the modern age are analysed in detail. The challenge facing intellectuals as a class is where they stand and how to act in an increasingly opaque world, one in which a stand must be taken with regard to the political forces that lie in wait. By engaging with ideas ranging from ideological rifts and political responsibility to the vastness of the natural world and the inherent strangeness of the universe, 'Intellectuals' offers a more critical look at our milieu and reorients us towards a more critical future.

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Professor Emeritus Dato' K.J.Ratnam is a political scientist and the author of many books on Malaysian politics, ethnic relations and other topics. After serving as Professor of Political Science and Dean of Social Sciences at the University of Singapore, he left for Penang in 1970 to become Foundation Dean, School of Comparative Social Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, where he held various positions until his retirement in 1995.  

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Originally published by Penerbit Universiti Sains Malaysia as 'Intellectuals, Creativity and Intolerance' in 2010.