John Burrow was a leading English historian of intellectual history. His work pioneered a more sophisticated approach to the history of social sciences, one that did not view the past solely as anticipation of the present. Burrow's scholarship primarily focused on the Whig interpretation of history and historiography more broadly. His incisive analyses and demanding style left an indelible mark on the field.
Burrow examines the impact of science and social thought on European intellectual life prior to World War I. He considers ideas in physics, social evolution and social Darwinism, and anxieties about modernity and personal identity.