The Order of Natural Necessity: A Kind of Introduction to Critical Realism

The Order of Natural Necessity: A Kind of Introduction to Critical Realism is based on the transcripts from six hours of live streamed talks given by Professor Roy Bhaskar, originator of Critical Realism (CR), in 2014, at University College London: Institute of Education.

The Order of Natural Necessity draws the transcript of the talks into book form. Keeping as close as possible to the original intention of the talks, which aimed to present the complexity of CR in an accessible and informative way, assuming that the reader has had little exposure to both the philosophical position taken by CR and the philosophical positions that CR challenges.

The Order of Natural Necessity departs from the usual academic presentation of CR, which therefore makes the book ideal for anyone wanting to begin his or her investigation of CR whilst it offers the reader that is more familiar with Roy Bhaskar a handy guide to the most important feature of the three phases of his work.

Gary Hawke, who hosted and worked closely with Roy Bhaskar in producing the original streamed talks, has edited the book. He has expanded the original text addressing the questions that students raised during the live streaming through the inclusion of over a 100 footnotes, tables, and diagrams.

The Order of Natural Necessity then is not just a book about Roy Bhaskar’s work; it also becomes a field guide to other critical realists. This allows The Order of Natural Necessity to become an important starting point in the understanding of Roy Bhaskar's work, and further, application of Critical Realism.

Unlike Roy Bhaskar's writing style, his lectures were very clear and listener-friendly. Fortunately, Gary Hawke recorded some of Roy Bhaskar's final lectures, and has edited them into this excellent book, valuable both for beginners and for more experienced critical realists.

Priscilla Alderson, Professor Emerita, University College London Institute of Education