Durant, Ariel (1898–1981)

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Durant, Ariel (1898–1981)

Russian-born American author and historical researcher. Born in 1898 as Ida Appel Kaufman in Prosurov, Russia; died in Hollywood Hills, California, on October 25, 1981, two weeks before the death of Will Durant, who was never told of her passing; married William James (Will) Durant; children: Ethel Durant ; Louis Durant.

Played a crucial role in the writing of the bestselling 11-volume series The Story of Civilization, first as her husband's research assistant, then as his full partner and collaborator; with husband, jointly awarded the Pulitzer Prize (1968) and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1977).

Although the 11 volumes of The Story of Civilization, which appeared in print in leisurely fashion from 1935 through 1975, never received accolades from professional historians, its authors Will and Ariel Durant created a work of popular history that continues to impress readers with its sincerity and deep humanity. Born into a Jewish family in a small town in Tsarist Russia, Ida Appel Kaufman was brought to New York by her family as an infant. Barely into her teens, she met and fell in love with her teacher at the anarchist-sponsored Francisco Ferrer School. Will Durant, a Roman Catholic ex-seminarian and an enthusiastic Socialist, also found the lively immigrant girl entrancing. At age 15, Ida, whom Will first called "Puck" and later Ariel, was "strong and brave as a boy." The name Ariel, taken from the imp in Shakespeare's "The Tempest," later became Ida Durant's legal first name. On their wedding day in 1913, Ariel "roller-skated all the way down from Harlem to City Hall."

Determined to succeed as an author, Will turned his detailed academic knowledge of the Western philosophical tradition into a book for the masses, The Story of Philosophy. Published in 1926, and made highly entertaining and readable because of its clear style and numerous colorful anecdotes, the book became a hit with sales of more than two million in the first three years after publication (total sales by the late 1970s were over three million copies). Since Ariel had assisted with the research for The Story of Philosophy, it became clear that the collaboration of husband and wife was fruitful, leading as it did to their financial independence. The young couple began to plan a new, more ambitious, project. Starting in 1927, Will and Ariel Durant began to gather materials for a vast panoramic history of mankind which they eventually chose to entitle The Story of Civilization. Will retired from teaching at Manhattan's adult education Labor Temple School, and with Ariel assisting him, the couple began to write the first volume of their ambitious project.

Appearing in 1935 as Our Oriental Heritage, their incredibly ambitious undertaking was now launched; it would not be completed until 40 years later with the appearance of The Age of Napoleon, the 11th and last volume of the series. Popular with the public and usually panned by academic historians, The Story of Mankind was conceived of by the Durants not as traditional "drums and trumpets" military-political-economic history but rather as a grand tapestry of mankind's cultural achievements. Speaking jointly, they noted that history was:

above all else the creation and recording of the intellectual, moral and aesthetic heritage of mankind; progress is the increasing abundance, use, preservation and transmission of that heritage. To those of us who study history not merely as a warning reminder of man's follies and crimes but also as a remembrance

of generative souls, the past ceases to be a depressing chamber of horrors; it becomes a celestial city, a spacious country of the mind, wherein a thousand saints, statesmen, inventors, scientists, poets, artists, musicians, philosophers and lovers still live and speak, teach and carve and sing.

Although the Durants and their two children lived in comfort in a Spanish-style home in the Hollywood Hills, their life from the mid-1930s on was based on a strictly followed regimen of work and study. In order to keep to their schedule of producing another volume in the Story of Mankind series every four years or so, they worked seven days a week from 8 in the morning to 10 at night. For each volume, they read about 500 books from cover to cover, mostly secondary sources, jotting down citations on green slips and significant ideas and commentaries on white pads. Next in the process was to string the notes in order beside a drafting board that rested across the arms of Will's rocking chair. It was there that he would consult the notes and reference sources, writing down his daily quota of text in a notebook that would be typed up at a later time.

The Durants' loyal readers, many of whom purchased their volumes of The Story of Mankind through their membership in the Book-of-the-Month-Club, eagerly awaited each new volume of the ambitious series begun in 1935 in the depths of the Great Depression. On the eve of World War II in 1939, The Life of Greece appeared, followed in 1944 by Caesar and Christ, and by The Age of Faith in 1950. Refusing to make concessions to their age, the Durants worked at a furious pace and so were able to publish The Renaissance ahead of schedule in 1953, following it up in 1957 with The Reformation. In 1961, when they published The Age of Reason Begins, Ariel's name began to appear on the title page as a co-author with her husband. This well-earned credit for her co-authorship would continue for the succeeding volumes of the series: The Age of Louis XIV (1963), The Age of Voltaire (1965), and Rousseau and Revolution (1967).

By the time Rousseau and Revolution appeared in 1967, many of the Durants' loyal readers made the reluctant conclusion that the advanced age of both Will and Ariel precluded any more books by them. The couple had themselves noted that the years since 1789 would have to be written about by "fresher spirits." Fortunately, the pessimists were mistaken when the Durants were able to uncover new reserves of energy that enabled them to publish two final books. One volume, The Age of Napoleon, which appeared in conjunction with Will's 90th birthday celebrations, ended the Story of Mankind as the 11th volume in the series. The other jointly written book, entitled A Dual Autobiography, appeared in 1977 as the couple's record of an extraordinary marriage and intellectual partnership. Although professional historians continued to disparage their work, the Durants received several major awards in their final decades, including a Pulitzer Prize in 1968 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977. After suffering a serious stroke, Ariel Durant died at her Hollywood Hills home on October 25, 1981. Will, in fragile health at age 96, had undergone surgery and was in intensive care at the time of her death. He was never informed of her passing, and died less than two weeks after she did, thus ending a truly unique partnership.