Abstract
Examines the historical view of Isaiah Berlin (1909-97) in the context of current historiography and relates his ideas to the work of his contemporaries. Through this investigation, some light can be shed on the intellectual climate of England in the 1950's. The analysis focuses on Berlin's comments on the study of the history of ideas, his evaluation of the development of modern historiography, and his concern over the influences of determinism. The reconstruction of Berlin's thought reveals the research dilemmas faced by Oxford academic circles, the dominance of the progressive view of historiography shared by many historians although rejected by Berlin, and the growing ascendancy of social sciences and Marxism.