Scott Nearing
Scott Nearing | |
|---|---|
Nearing in 1915 | |
| Born | August 6, 1883 Morris Run, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | August 24, 1983 (aged 100) Harborside, Maine, U.S. |
| Alma mater | University of Pennsylvania (PhD) |
| Occupations | Radical economist, educator, and writer |
| Years active | 1905–1982 |
| Known for | Political activist, author, and advocate of simple living |
| Political party | Socialist (1917–1923) Communist (1927–1930) |
| Other political affiliations | Workers (1927–1929) |
| Movement | Socialism, Communism |
| Spouse(s) |
Nellie Marguerite Seeds
(m. 1908; died 1946) |
| Children | 2, including John Scott |
Scott Nearing (August 6, 1883 – August 24, 1983) was an American radical economist, educator, writer, political activist, pacifist, vegetarian and advocate of simple living. In 1915, he was dismissed from a teaching position at the Wharton School on account of his left-wing politics, becoming a cause célèbre of the American Left. His opposition to American entry into World War I led to his prosecution under the Espionage Act, for which he was found not guilty. After the war, he became a leading leftist intellectual associated with the Socialist Party of America, and later with the Communist Party USA. From the Great Depression until the end of his life, Nearing and his wife Helen lived a self-sufficient homesteading lifestyle. Together, they published Living the Good Life: How to Live Simply and Sanely in a Troubled World in 1954.