The period from 1933 to 1943 was a crucial decade in the dramatic, intersecting lives of some of history's greatest philosophers. Simone de Beauvoir was laying the foundations for nothing less than the future of feminism. Ayn Rand was honing one of the most politically influential voices of the twentieth century. Hannah Arendt was developing some of today's most important liberal ideas, culminating with the publication of The Origins of Totalitarianism and her arrival as a peerless intellectual celebrity. Simone Weil, who turned away from fame to devote herself entirely to refugee aid and the resistance movement during the war. This book tells the story of four singular philosophers-indomitable women who were refugees and resistance fighters-each putting forward a vision of a truly free and open society at a time of authoritarianism and war.