The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07.
Hook, Sidney
1902–89, American philosopher, b. New York City, grad. City College (B.S., 1923), Ph.D. Columbia Univ., 1927. He taught at New York Univ. (1927–72) and was long head of its philosophy department (1948–69). Originally a Marxist, he wrote The Meaning of Marx (1934) and From Hegel to Marx (1936). Hook later became disenchanted with Marxism and became active in anti-Communist causes. His opinions on American life were expressed in such works as Heresy Yes, Conspiracy No (1953), Common Sense and the Fifth Amendment (1957), The Place of Religion in a Free Society (1968), and Academic Freedom and Academic Anarchy (1970).
