“The downfall of liberty which in every case followed the success of these attacks demonstrates in hard facts what we said before: that freedom of thought is rendered pointless and must disappear wherever reason and morality are deprived of their status as a force in their own right.”

—Michael Polanyi, Meaning

“As human beings, we must inevitably see the universe from a centre lying within ourselves and speak about it in terms of a human language shaped by the exigencies of human intercourse. Any attempt rigorously to eliminate our human perspective from our picture of the world must lead to absurdity.”

—Michael Polanyi, Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-critical Philosophy

“Sartre puts it, value arises simply from our choices. What we choose, we value simply because we have chosen it (and apparently we remain scot-free at any moment to non-value it by simply un-choosing it). In other words, we do not choose (in his view) because we see the value of something. We see the value of something because we have chosen it.”

—Michael Polanyi, Meaning

The Society

Welcome to The Polanyi Society, a scholarly community dedicated to exploring the life and work of Michael Polanyi.

Michael Polanyi (1891-1976) was a physician, chemist, and philosopher whose work crossed disciplinary boundaries and opened up many new avenues for research and development. His thought has been studied by scholars working in fields as distinct as chemistry, philosophy, ethics, intellectual history, theology, political theory, economics, education, technology, and others.

The Society exists to encourage the on-going study of Polanyi’s efforts, to invite those interested in Polanyi’s legacy to share in the convivial exchange of ideas, and to demonstrate ways Polanyi’s thought can serve as a resource for addressing contemporary questions and initiatives.

Learn More

Tradition & Discovery

Tradition & Discovery is the journal of the Polanyi Society.

Tradition & Discovery (hereafter, TAD) is an open-access digital journal that is independently published by the Polanyi Society. TAD is managed by an editorial board, and publishes peer-reviewed essays and reviews related to the life and thought of Michael Polanyi as well as information about the Society and its activities.

TAD is selectively indexed in The Philosopher’s Index and Religious & Theological Abstracts, and is included in the EBSCO on-line database of academic and research journals. Past issues of TAD are archived on the Society’s website.

Learn More

Recordings of Recent Zoom Sessions

Recent zoom session recording:

Videos of recent talks on digital resources helpful for Polanyi studies.