Felix Kaufmann, Review of Sidney Hook, John Dewey: An Intellectual Portrait (1941)

Felix Kaufmann’s brief journal book review praises Hook’s introduction to Dewey while questioning its treatment of other philosophical traditions. He describes the book’s twelve-chapter progression: a biographical sketch, ten chapters offering a clear and well-organized synopsis of Dewey’s philosophy, and a concluding appraisal of Dewey as the philosopher of American democracy. Written for Dewey’s eightieth birthday, the portrait combines philosophical exposition with the enthusiasm of a close follower.

Kaufmann distinguishes sympathetic interpretation from a distortion of philosophical context. Against the objection that Hook offers no criticism of Dewey, he asks:

If the author feels like simply saying yes, why should he say "yes, but"?

Admiration does not, for Kaufmann, oblige an author to manufacture reservations. His own objection concerns the contrast through which Hook makes Dewey’s achievement intelligible:

I have another objection to raise, however: the background of traditional philosophy against which Dewey's philosophy is expounded is painted too blackly.

The concern is pedagogical: Hook may encourage readers to study Dewey while discouraging them from exploring other philosophy. Kaufmann’s favorable verdict therefore preserves a qualification about intellectual openness. The review’s central distinction is between legitimate enthusiasm for a thinker and an unduly dismissive account of the traditions surrounding him.