humans play a creative role in constructing the social world and to transforming their natural environment. Neither humanity nor its universe is determined or finished. For Hook this conviction was crucial. He argued that when a society is at the crossroads of choosing the direction of further development, an individual can play a dramatic role and even become an independent power on whom the choice of the historical pathway depends. In his book, Hook provided a great number of examples of the influence of great people, and the examples are mostly associated with various crucial moments in history, such as revolutions and crises. Some scholars have critically responded because, as one of them claims, "he does not take into account that an individual's greatest influence can be revealed not so much in the period of the old regime's collapse, but in the formation period of a new one. [...] Besides, he did not make clear the situation when alternatives appear either as the result of a crisis or as the result of Great Man's plan or intention without [a] manifested crisis". Hook introduced a theoretical division of historic personalities and especially leaders into the eventful man and the event-making man, depending on their influences on the historical process. For example, he considers Lenin as having been an event-making man, because of his having acted in an important circumstance to change the developmental direction not only of Russia but also of the whole world in the 20th century. Hook attached great importance to accidents and contingencies in history, thus opposing, among others, Herbert Fisher, who made attempts to present history as "waves" of emergencies. "Ethics of Controversy" In 1954, Hook published an essay titled "The Ethics of Controversy" in which he set down ten ground rules for democratic discourse within a democracy. Works Books The Metaphysics of Pragmatism Chicago, The Open Court Publishing Company, 1927. Towards the Understanding of Karl Marx: A Revolutionary Interpretation New York City: John Day Company, 1933. Christianity and Marxism: A Symposium New York City: Polemic Publishers, 1934. The Meaning of Marx, an edited collection, 1934. From Hegel to Marx, 1936. John Dewey: An Intellectual Portrait, 1939. Reason, Social Myths, and Democracy, 1940. The Hero in History: A Study in Limitation and Possibility, 1943. Education for Modern Man, 1946. John Dewey: Philosopher of Science and Freedom, Hook, editor, 1950. Heresy, Yes–Conspiracy, No, 1953 (originally published as soft-back