Arthur Koestler
Sign in to saveHungarian-British author and journalist (1905–1983)
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Arthur Koestler was a Hungarian-British author and journalist (1905–1983) best known for his novels and essays exploring politics, science, and human nature. His work, particularly his examination of totalitarianism and the Communist movement, influenced twentieth-century intellectual thought and remains relevant to debates about ideology and power.
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Person · Open Library
- Born
- 5 September 1905
- Died
- 1 March 1983
- Works
- 291
Top works
- The yogi and the commissar
- Đêm Hay Ngày
- Darkness at noon
- Afelah ba-tsohorayim
- Reünie
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Listeners · Last.fm
- Listeners
- 56
- Total plays
- 2,127
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Article
Arthur Koestler CBE ( UK: /ˈkɜːstlər/, US: /ˈkɛst-/; German: [ˈaʁtuːɐ̯ ˈkœstlɐ]; Hungarian: Kösztler Artúr [ˈkøstlɛr ˈɒrtuːr]; 5 September 1905 – 1 March 1983) was an Austro-Hungarian-born author and journalist. Koestler was born in Budapest, and was educated in Austria, apart from his early school years. In 1931, Koestler joined the Communist Party of Germany but resigned in 1938 after becoming disillusioned with Stalinism.
Having moved to Britain in 1940, Koestler published his novel Darkness at Noon, an anti-totalitarian work that gained him international fame. Over the next 43 years, Koestler espoused many political causes and wrote novels, memoirs, biographies, and numerous essays. In 1949, Koestler began secretly working with a British Cold War anti-communist propaganda department known as the Information Research Department (IRD), which would republish and distribute many of his works, and also fund his activities. In 1968, he was awarded the Sonning Prize "for [his] outstanding contribution to European culture". In 1972, he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE).
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1905 births1983 deaths1983 suicides20th-century British autobiographers20th-century British essayists20th-century British historians20th-century British journalists20th-century British male writers20th-century British novelists20th-century British philosophers20th-century British screenwriters20th-century British travel writers