This review essay seeks to understand the link between Hersch Lauterpacht�s biography and his scholarship by using the dichotomy of the �private�/�public� divide. It argues that this dichotomy is a repeated motif in Hersch�s life and work, and hence also in this biography. In the concluding section, the review shifts to discuss how this dichotomy is reflected in Elihu Lauterpacht�s writing.