The Letters of Bernard Shaw to the Times

Shaw lived through a time of great change, in which he played a major role and many of the momentous events of the twentieth century are touched upon in this important collection. The Times was a powerful medium not just in England but throughout the empire and in its heyday the views aired in the main articles and the letters columns were heeded and discussed. From his first letter in 1898, Shaw was endeavouring to gain acceptance in the columns of The Times in a way that was distinct from his other personae of critic, socialist and playwright. Shaw took on the world of scholars, politicians, critics and the medical profession. He offered advice on economics to different Chancellors and got involved in the campaign for women’s rights and the letters range over a wide variety of subjects that include Art, Music, Theatre, Language, Phonetics, Politics, Medicine, Economics and Women’s Rights. He became an icon who was labelled by Bertrand Russell as an iconoclast.