The collection includes philosophical essays written in the 50s and 60s of the twentieth century. Arendt discusses the role that the concepts of "tradition", "religion" and "authority" have played in the political and historical self-perception of Europeans since ancient Rome. Stating the disintegration of the unity that these concepts formed up to modern times, Arendt explores the consequences of this disintegration for different areas of human life - education, politics, culture. Arendt presents his essays as "exercises in political thought", as attempts to learn to think in a world in which traditional concepts and ideas can no longer serve as a support for us. PDF A4 saved publishing design.