William R. Polk
William R. Polk | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 7, 1929 Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. |
| Died | April 6, 2020 (aged 91) Vence, France |
William Roe Polk (March 7, 1929 – April 6, 2020) was an American foreign policy consultant and author. He was a professor of history at Harvard University and the University of Chicago, and was President of the latter's Adlai Stevenson Institute of International Affairs.
Early life
William Roe Polk was born on March 7, 1929, in
Career
Polk taught Middle Eastern history and politics at Harvard from 1955–61, and was then appointed by President Kennedy to the State Department's Policy Planning Council focusing on the Middle East and North Africa.[2] While there he served as a member of the Cuban Missile Crisis management team.[1]
In 1961 Polk was a
Polk resigned from the federal government to join the University of Chicago as professor of history in 1965, where he taught for ten years and established its Center for Middle Eastern Studies, serving as Founding Director.[2]
In 1967 Polk became president of the
Polk was Vice Chairman of the
William Polk was also the foreign policy adviser for Democratic candidate Dennis Kucinich's presidential campaign.
Personal life and death
Polk was married to Joan Cooledge from 1950 until their divorce in 1960. He then married Ann Cross in 1962 and they divorced in 1975. Polk then married Baroness Elisabeth von Oppenheimer in 1981.[1]
He had three daughters, a son, and eight grandchildren. Polk died from leukemia on April 6, 2020, in Vence, France, at the age of 91.[1]
Books
- Backdrop to Tragedy: The Struggle for Palestine (1957). coauthors William R. Polk, David M. Stamler, and Edmund Asfour. Beacon Press online edition
- The Opening of South Lebanon, 1788-1840: A Study of the Impact of The West on the Middle East (1963). Harvard University Press
- The United States and the Arab World (1965). Harvard University Press, 3rd edition 1975: ISBN 0-674-92718-4
- The Arab World. 4th edition 1980, hardcover: ISBN 0-674-04317-0
- The Arab World Today. 5th edition 1991, ISBN 0-674-04319-7
- The Arab World. 4th edition 1980, hardcover:
- Beginnings of Modernization in the Middle East: The Nineteenth Century (1968). University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-67425-8
- Passing Brave (1973). Alfred Knopf, ISBN 0-394-47893-2reprint Panda Press 2013
- The Golden Ode by Labid Ibn Rabiah. Translated with an Introduction and Commentary by William R. Polk (1974). University of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-46717-1
- The Elusive Peace: The Middle East in the Twentieth Century (1979). Palgrave Macmillan, ISBN 0-312-24383-9
- Neighbors and Strangers: The Fundamentals of Foreign Affairs (1997). University Of Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-67329-4
- Polk's Folly: An American Family History (2000). Doubleday, ISBN 0-385-49151-4
- Understanding Iraq: The Whole Sweep of Iraqi History from Genghis Khan's Mongols to the Ottoman Turks to the British Mandate to the American Occupation (2005). HarperCollins hardcover: ISBN 0-06-076469-4
- The Birth of America: From Before Columbus to the Revolution (2006). HarperCollins hardcover: ISBN 0-06-075090-1
- Out of Iraq: A Practical Plan for Withdrawal Now (2006). coauthor ISBN 1-4165-3456-3
- Violent Politics: A History of Insurgency, Terrorism, and Guerrilla War, from the American Revolution to Iraq (2007). HarperCollins hardcover: ISBN 0-06-123619-5
- Understanding Iran: Everything You Need to Know, From Persia to the Islamic Republic, From Cyrus to Ahmadinejad (2009). Palgrave * *Macmillan hardcover: ISBN 978-0-230-61678-3
- Personal History: Living in Interesting Times. William Roe Polk. 2013. ISBN 978-0-9829340-1-2.
- Distant Thunder. William Roe Polk. 2013. ISBN 978-0-9829340-0-5.
- Humpty Dumpty: The Fate of Regime Change. William Roe Polk. 2013. ISBN 978-0-9829340-3-6.
- Blind Man's Buff. William Roe Polk. 2013. ISBN 978-0-9829340-4-3.
- Crusade and Jihad: The Thousand-year War Between the Muslim World and the Global North. Yale University Press. 2018. ISBN 978-0-300-22290-6.
References
- ^ a b c d Seelye, Katharine Q. (April 10, 2020). "William R. Polk, Historian and Middle East Envoy, Dies at 91". The New York Times. Retrieved April 10, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i williampolk.com, William R. Polk's Author
- ^ John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, William R. Polk
- ^ Council on Foreign Relations, Membership Roster (as of October 24, 2013)
External links
- Homepage of William R. Polk, with articles.
- "Iraq: A New Leaf" by William R. Polk, from New York Review of BooksFebruary 18, 1999.
- Interview of Polk about his book Polk's Folly by Chicago Public Radio, April 27, 2000, RealAudio format.
- "A Visit to Iraq" The Calm Before a Second Desert Storm? by William R. Polk, Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, April 2003, pages 24–26.
- "What is to Be Done in Iraq?" by William R. Polk April 24, 2004.
- "Thoughts on Torture" guest editorial in Informed Comment, May 26, 2004.
- "A Time for Leaving" by William R. Polk, American Conservative, January 17, 2005.
- "The Lessons of Iraq We Refuse to Learn" by William R. Polk History News Network, April 4, 2005.
- "Could a New Dictatorship Arise in Iraq?" interview of Polk by audio formats).
- "Concerning Public Ignorance" What America Needs to Do to Achieve Its Foreign Policy Goals, by William R. Polk History News Network, August 29, 2005.
- Interview of Polk on writing The Birth of America June 19, 2006.
- "The Way Out of War" A blueprint for leaving Iraq now November 8, 2006.
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