The rise of a scientific world outlook in ancient Greece, and the development of agriculture, manufacturing, and trade that prepared its way. “His claim is that materialism is not a matter of theory but of fact proved by practice.… the book is an honest attempt to retrace the earliest developments of the materialist world outlook. Simple and clearly written.” —Choice “This is the only history of ancient Western materialism by an American. Written by a man who understands and believes in this spirit of his subject.” —International Bibliography of Philosophy “Novack views ancient materialism against the broad background of the growth of civilized thought. Of course he stresses social and economic conditions, but is not narrowly doctrinaire; he can pay tribute to the positive contributions of the great leaders of ancient idealism and defend them against the attacks of ‘narrow-minded’ Marxists.” —The Classical World “Examines the first steps in the development of the materialist conception of the world.” —Research Book News George Novak (1905–1992) joined the communist movement in the United States in 1933 and remained a member and leader of the Socialist Workers Party until his death. As national secretary of the American Committee for the Defense of Leon Trotsky, Novack helped organize the 1937 International Commission of Inquiry that investigated the charges fabricated by Stalin’s Moscow trials. In the 1940s Novack was national secretary of the Civil Rights Defense Committee, which gathered support for leaders of the SWP and the Midwest Teamsters’ strikes and organizing drive who were framed up and jailed under the witch-hunting Smith Act. He played a prominent role in numerous other civil liberties and civil rights battles over subsequent decades, including the landmark lawsuit against FBI spying and disruption won by the Socialist Workers Party in 1986. He was also active in defense of the Cuban Revolution and against the war in Vietnam. His works include: An Introduction to the Logic of Marxism Genocide against the Indians The Origins of Materialism Existentialism versus Marxism Empiricism and Its Evolution The Marxist Theory of Alienation; Democracy and Revolution Understanding History Humanism and Socialism Pragmatism versus Marxism America’s Revolutionary Heritage Polemics in Marxist Philosophy. Used Book in Good Condition