Social and political philosophy Books
Princeton University Press Confucian Perfectionism
Book SynopsisSince the very beginning, Confucianism has been troubled by a serious gap between its political ideals and the reality of societal circumstances. This title examines and reconstructs both Confucian political thought and liberal democratic institutions, blending them to form a Confucian political philosophy.Trade Review"[T]he political vision that emerges from the pages of this book is reasonable, humane and inspiring."--Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews "Chan has created a very interesting work in the Confucian tradition of revival and reinterpretations for current times."--Choice "[This book is] at the forefront of contemporary attempts to grapple with the normative and empirical issues presented by East Asian politics and the relationship of those issues with democracy. [It] supplies important insights into, and reasons for, considering alternatives to liberal democracy, but also raises equally important questions and problems related to those alternatives."--David J. Lorenzo, Perspectives on Politics "Joseph Chan's book is an exceptionally ambitious yet moderate reconstruction of Confucianism for such an inhospitable world and, as such, it is important both in its own right and as an exemplar of a steadily expanding normative enterprise."--Jiwei Ci, Dao "Chan's writing is very clear and wellstructured. His arguments and in-depth analysis of issues shows that he has a thorough understanding of the strengths and limitations of both western liberal democracy and ancient Confucianism."--Andrew T.W. Hung, European Political ScienceTable of ContentsForeword by Series Editor ix Preface xi Introduction. Interplay between the Political Ideal and Reality 1 PART I. Political Authority and Institution 25 Chapter 1. What Is Political Authority? 27 Chapter 2. Monism or Limited Government? 46 Chapter 3. The Role of Institution 65 Chapter 4. Mixing Confucianism and Democracy 81 PART II. Rights, Liberties, and Justice 111 Chapter 5. Human Rights as a Fallback Apparatus 113 Chapter 6. Individual Autonomy and Civil Liberties 131 Chapter 7. Social Justice as Sufficiency for All 160 Chapter 8. Social Welfare and Care 178 Conclusion. Confucian Political Perfectionism 191 Appendix 1: Notes on Scope and Methods 205 Appendix 2: Against the Ownership Conception of Authority 213 Bibliography 233 Index 247
£34.20
Princeton University Press The Tyranny of the Ideal
Book SynopsisTrade Review"This book is a spirited and convincing critique of utopianism and a compelling defense of pluralistic liberalism, and it offers a welcome contribution to the ongoing conversation about the nature and importance of political liberty."---Kenneth B. McIntyre, Anamnesis"Gaus lays out a vigorous and widely useful exposition of what a philosophy focused on justice needs to do in order to shift from the real of pure moral philosophy . . . to making recommendations about the political world."---Christopher Cochrane, Perspectives on PoliticsTable of ContentsPreface xv Chapter I The Allure of the Ideal: Orienting the Quest for Justice 1 Chapter II The Elusive Ideal: Searching under a Single Perspective 42 Chapter III The Fractured Ideal: Searching with Diverse Perspectives 105 Chapter IV The Nonideal: The Open Society 150 Chapter V Advancing from the Citadel 241 Appendixes 251 Works Cited 265 Index 279
£31.50
Princeton University Press Equal Recognition The Moral Foundations of
Book SynopsisConflicting claims about culture are a familiar refrain of political life in the contemporary world. This book reasserts the case in favor of liberal multiculturalism by developing a new ethical defense of minority rights.Trade Review"Patten's book, well written, clear, and well argued, is now the best liberal case for recognition. It is also an important rethinking of the idea of liberal neutrality."--Jeff Spinner-Halev, The Review of PoliticsTable of ContentsPreface vii 1. Introduction: Liberalism and the Accommodation of Cultural Diversity 1 1.1. Competing Interpretations of Liberalism 1 1.2. Why the Case for Liberal Culturalism Needs to Be Restated 6 1.3. Four Distinctions, Plus One More 11 1.4. The Main Argument of the Book 27 1.5. Overview 34 2. Rethinking Culture: The Social Lineage Account 38 2.1. The Dilemma of Essentialism 38 2.2. The Critique of Essentialism 40 2.3. Cultural Continuity 45 2.4. The Social Lineage Account 50 2.5. Some Related Concepts 57 2.6. The Normative Significance of Culture: A First Glance 65 3. Why Does Culture Matter? 69 3.1. Options Disadvantage 69 3.2. Culture as Context of Choice 73 3.3. The Access Account 78 3.4. The Adequacy Account 92 3.5. Cultural Preservation versus Fair Treatment of Cultures 102 4. Liberal Neutrality: A Reinterpretation and Defense 104 4.1. An Unfashionable Idea 104 4.2. Neutrality as a Downstream Value 108 4.3. Conceptions of Neutrality 111 4.4. Institutions of Neutrality 119 4.5. The Fairness Justification of Neutrality 123 4.6. The Value of Self-Determination 131 4.7. Fairness and Neutral Treatment 137 5. Equal Recognition 149 5.1. Justice and Cultural Decline: Three Views 149 5.2. Recognition 156 5.3. Recognition and Justice 164 5.4. Equal Recognition versus Liberal Nationalism 171 5.5. The Objection from Expensive Tastes 177 5.6. Is Full Proceduralism Enough? 182 6. Equal Recognition and Language Rights 186 6.1. Linguistic Diversity and Language Rights 186 6.2. Three Kinds of Language Rights 188 6.3. Two Models: Nation Building and Language Preservation 192 6.4. The Equal Recognition Model 196 6.5. The Case for Equal Recognition 201 6.6. The Nation-Building Challenge 205 6.7. The Language Preservation Challenge--Weak Versions 210 6.8. The Language Preservation Challenge--Stronger Versions 216 6.9. Equal Recognition versus the Territoriality Principle 227 7. Democratic Secession from a Multinational State 232 7.1. Theories of Secession 232 7.2. The Failure-of-Recognition Condition 237 7.3. The Equal Recognition of National Identity 242 7.4. The Democracy Argument 256 7.5. The Confederal Alternative 261 7.6. Practical Implications 264 8. Immigrants, National Minorities, and Minority Rights 269 8.1. The Immigrant/National Minority Dichotomy 269 8.2. How Voluntary Is the Decision to Emigrate? 275 8.3. Are Cultural Rights Alienable? 281 8.4. Is the Receiving Society Acting Permissibly? 285 8.5. The Limits of Voluntary Acceptance 294 References 299 Index 311
£40.50
Princeton University Press George Berkeley
Book SynopsisTrade Review"A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year""What Jones has revealed is the fascinating combination of chaos and coherence laced through Berkeley’s life."---Alex Dean, Prospect Magazine"[Tom] Jones…presents Berkeley’s life through his voluminous writings, the views of his friends and family, and the opinions of those who encountered him and his writings. The result is a big book, packed with quotations from Berkeley’s works, excerpts from letters, records of journeys and activities , and details about Berkeley’s social an personal life and the people in it. Reading it requires stamina, but the rewards is a better acquaintance with a man who, as the subtitle of the book indicates, lived a life under the influence of his philosophy."---Janna Thompson, Australian Book Review"Tom Jones has written a superb biography about the mind of a reactionary, a powerful thinker whose curiosity about the world was shaped by his religious and political conservatism."---Sean Sheehan, Prisma"There is so much to like about Tom Jones’s George Berkeley: A Philosophical Life. This new biography is an impressive effort to unearth the whole man: Jones leaves no page unturned, no sermon unsummarized, no piece of Berkelean writing, however obscure, unrevisited. . . . this monumental work will likely remain the book on Berkeley for some time."---Costica Bradatan, Times Literary Supplement"Magisterial."---David Lorimer, Paradigm Explorer"Jones’ book is a product of titanic labor and meets the highest standards of intellectual biography. Jones suggests new interpretations of some of Berkeley’s thoughts and notes, finds new biographical materials, and offers a comprehensive approach to the whole body of Berkeley’s thought."---Artem Besedin, Berkeley Studies"Jones’s biography could not have arrived at a better time, just as public debates on the active participation of Irish people in empire and the slave trade proliferate and intensify. . . . It is easy to “de-commemorate” a thinker . . . it is much more difficult to critically engage with their thought and to gauge their influence, all while remaining conscious of their shortcomings. In this, as in much else, Jones provides a model."---Adam Coleman, Dublin Review of Books"Scholars in early modern philosophy and intellectual history, and of course Berkeley scholars, will welcome the book."---Takaharu Oda, Eighteenth Century Ireland
£29.75
Princeton University Press Perfect Me Beauty as an Ethical Ideal
Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of The Atlantic's Best Books of 2018""In . . . Perfect Me, Heather Widdows, a philosophy professor at the University of Birmingham, England, convincingly argues that the pressures on women to appear thinner, younger and firmer are stronger than ever."---Amanda Hess, New York Times"In 1990 . . . Naomi Wolf published The Beauty Myth, her examination—and her indictment—of the way attractiveness functions as both a metaphor for and a mandate over women’s lives. The book now has a sequel, of sorts. . . . Perfect Me: Beauty as an Ethical Ideal . . . [is] a scholarly work that is urgently relevant to the current cultural moment."---Meagan Garber, The Atlantic"Perfect Me, a buzzed-about new book by Heather Widdows, argues women face unprecedented pressure to appear thinner, younger and firmer."---Anne Kingston, Maclean's"Heather Widdows, in Perfect Me, considers the far-ranging implications of attractiveness rendered in the imperative, giving beauty itself, in the process, the rigorously intellectual treatment it deserves. The book, an academic title with mass-market implications, considers beauty as a construction, racialized and gendered; beauty as a constriction, often punishing and occasionally cruel; and beauty as a goal that remains, for most, persistently out of reach. Perfect Me is a treatise that often reads, fittingly, as an indictment—a book that recognizes all the ways people are taught, still, to judge books by their covers." * The Atlantic *"A sharp and accessible read."---Regan Penaluna, Guenrica"Widdows is at her best in her analysis of liberalism’s uncritical glorification of choice (and therefore responsibility), which fails to consider social contexts and pressures and so allows for victim blaming when women ‘choose’ to comply with beauty standards."---M.A. Betz, Choice Reviews"Widdows deserves high praise for her interdisciplinary work in this book and its combination with philosophical rigor."---Samantha Brennan, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews"Perfect Me is well-worth reading for anyone who is concerned about the importance of beauty in modern life and the imperative to develop critical perspectives for thinking about it. It sets out the questions that we need to be thinking about and does so in a way that makes it clear what is at stake in our search for evermore-perfect bodies."---Kathy Davis, European Journal of Women's Studies"Heather Widdows[‘s Perfect Me] gave me language to understand my own thought processes around my body, and that framework freed me from years of accidentally accumulated bullshit thinking. I’m grateful I stumbled onto it. I think of it frequently."---Bri Lee, Sydney Morning Herald
£33.25
Princeton University Press Moral Imagination
Book SynopsisSpanning many historical and literary contexts, this book brings together a dozen essays by one of America's premier cultural critics. It explores the importance of imagination and sympathy to suggest how these faculties may illuminate the motives of human action and the reality of justice.Trade ReviewShortlisted for the 2015 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay, Pen American Center One of The Times Higher Education Supplement's Books of the Year 2014, chosen by Jane Shaw "A historically informed examination of moral imagination and human sympathy, as seen through the lives of such figures as Edmund Burke, Mohandas K. Gandhi and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."--Sewell Chan, New York Times "[T]hey shed much light on the frame of mind in which Bromwich approached the ambiguous figure of Burke in his biography, and even more on how Bromwich is relevant to the politics of our own times... Those who read these essays alongside Bromwich's account of Burke's intellectual and political career will find their eye caught by three topics, all with Burkean overtones, deeply relevant to the present, and handled with Bromwich's characteristic sharpness... Bromwich is particularly sharp on the way government spokesmen wrap the realities of massacre, torture, and gratuitous cruelty in euphemism... The central essays of Bromwich's book are more meditative, and none the worse for it... The final chapter, 'Comments on Perpetual War,' displays Bromwich's skills as a critic in the tradition of Hazlitt and Orwell."--Alan Ryan, New York Review of Books "[A] rich and memorable book... Bromwich appears here in his well-established role as a public intellectual, as civilized as he is trenchant, observing with a mixture of dark wit and moral exasperation diverse aspects of the contemporary American scene. He has a good essay, both horrifying and funny, on the destruction of privacy in the modern United States; a remarkable essay on the psychopathology of political ambition; a fine piece questioning 'cultural identity' as a liberal shibboleth."--Seamus Perry, Times Literary Supplement "Moral Imagination brings together a dozen pieces published over the past twenty years in which [Bromwich] mostly explores the minds of people he admires. There is a particularly fine discussion of Lincoln and the constitutional necessity of the Civil War. There are also spirited attacks on the culture of celebrity and on the chicanery of Dick Cheney, which will have most readers whooping."--Ferdinand Mount, London Review of Books "Bibliophiles, scholars and concerned citizens--all will find provocation and enlightenment here."--Kirkus Reviews "Bromwich delivers a probing and incisive collection of essays about culture, politics, imagination, and the war on terror... Moral Imagination is an eloquent, demanding, and fiercely polemical work likely to appeal most to independent-minded readers and scholars alike."--Lee Polevoi, Foreword Reviews "Bromwich as a stylist belongs to the older, better class... [Moral Imagination] is clearly a product of ... bracing self-reflection."--Helen Andrews, Books & Culture "Moral Imagination is an important book... [T]he patient reader will be well rewarded by the author's many insights into some of our nation's most pressing concerns."--Walter G. Moss, History News Network "In this collection of essays, Bromwich eschews identity politics and multiculturalism from a 'left' perspective, preferring instead the concept he articulates with the book's title: 'moral imagination.'... These essays are demanding but well worth the effort."--Choice "Bromwich's book of essays is rich, well-cooked and a most satisfying dish."--Bob Lane, Metapsychology Online ReviewsTable of ContentsPreface xi ONE 1 Moral Imagination 3 2 A Dissent on Cultural Identity 40 3 The Meaning of Patriotism in 1789 70 TWO 4 Lincoln and Whitman as Representative Americans 91 5 Lincoln's Constitutional Necessity 118 6 Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Ambition 160 THREE 7 The American Psychosis 183 8 How Publicity Makes People Real 222 9 The Self-Deceptions of Empire 250 FOUR 10 What Is the West? 273 11 Holy Terror and Civilized Terror 287 12 Comments on Perpetual War 304 Cheney's Law 304 Euphemism and Violence 310 William Safire: Wars Made out of Words 324 What 9/11 Makes Us Forget 330 The Snowden Case 334 Index 345
£19.80
Princeton University Press The Enlightenment History of an Idea Updated
Book Synopsis"Arguing that philosophical and historical views of the era have long been hopelessly confused, Vincenzo Ferrone makes the case that it is only by separating these views and taking an approach grounded in social and cultural history that we can begin to grasp what the Enlightenment was--and why it is still relevant today"--Dust jacket flap.Trade Review"Ferrone's familiarity with the primary literature is impressive, covering thinkers from France and Italy to Germany and Scotland. His grasp of the historiography is just as sure, encompassing both Anglophone and European research. This makes for a book that is far more than just a synthesis."--Richard Bourke, Times Literary Supplement "Compelling."--New Republic "Ferrone's command of his material is impressive... There is something for us to learn, or be reminded of, on nearly every page of this dense but often enlightened work."--John Toren, Rain Taxi Review of Books "[The Enlightenment] offers a novel and provocative interpretation of the Enlightenment that effectively challenges scholars of the movement to rethink their own understandings of the intellectual turmoil and upheaval of the eighteenth century."--Review of Politics "How welcome it is to have Vincenzo Ferrone's Lezioni illuministiche available in English... No brief summary can convey all the pleasures, and instruction, that accompany a reading of The Enlightenment: History of an Idea. Not the least of its attractions is the fact that Ferrone wears his immense erudition lightly, expressing himself in a prose that is as ludic as it is lucid, joining clarity to wit in classic Enlightenment fashion."--Johnson Kent Wright, H-France ReviewTable of ContentsIntroduction - Living the Enlightenment vii Acknowledgments xvi Part I The Philosophers' Enlightenment: Thinking the Centaur 1 1 Historians and Philosophers: The Peculiarity of the Enlightenment as Historical Category 3 2 Kant: Was ist Aufklarung? The Emancipation of Man through Man 7 3 Hegel: The Dialectics of the Enlightenment as Modernity's Philosophical Issue 12 4 Marx and Nietzsche: The Enlightenment from Bourgeois Ideology to Will to Power 23 5 Horkheimer and Adorno: The Totalitarian Face of the Dialectic of Enlightenment 30 6 Foucault: The Return of the Centaur and the Death of Man 34 7 Postmodern Anti-Enlightenment Positions: From the Cassirer-Heidegger Debate to Benedict XVI's katholische Aufklarung 43 Part II The Historians' Enlightenment: The Cultural Revolution of the Ancien Regime 55 8 For a Defense of Historical Knowledge: Beyond the Centaur 57 9 The Epistemologia imaginabilis in Eighteenth-Century Science and Philosophy 67 10 The Enlightenment-French Revolution Paradigm Between Political Myth and Epistemological Impasse 79 11 The Twentieth Century and the Enlightenment as Historical Problem: From Political History to Social and Cultural History 87 12 What Was the Enlightenment? The Humanism of the Moderns in Ancien Regime Europe 95 13 Chronology and Geography of a Cultural Revolution 120 14 Politicization and Natura naturans: The Late Enlightenment Question and the Crisis of the Ancien Regime 140 Afterword The Enlightenment: A Revolution of the Mind or the Ancien Regime's Cultural Revolution? 155 Notes 173 Index 203
£33.25
Princeton University Press In the Shadow of Justice
Book SynopsisIn this first-ever history of contemporary liberal theory, Forrester shows how liberal egalitarianism--a set of ideas about justice, equality, obligation, and the state--became dominant, and traces its emergence from the political and ideological context of the postwar United States and Britain.d Britain.Trade Review"Winner of the S-USIH Book Prize, Society for U.S. Intellectual History""Winner of the Merle Curti Intellectual History Award, Organization of American Historians""Shortlisted for the RHS Gladstone Book Prize, Royal Historical Society""Shortlisted for the ECPR Political Theory Prize, European Consortium for Political Research""One of New Statesman's Books of the Year 2019""Winner of the David and Elaine Spitz Prize, The International Conference for the Study of Political Thought""[An] extraordinary study . . . Forrester is a subtle intellectual historian as well as a political theorist."---Jedediah Purdy, New Republic"Political philosophy today needs the kind of bold questioning that Forrester demands."---Seyla Benhabib, The Nation"A fascinating account of how the concerns of philosophers were transformed by the work of one diffident and self-effacing philosopher, the Harvard professor John Rawls."---Alan Ryan, New Statesman"A path-breaking book that shows how postwar liberalism was transformed by the philosophy of John Rawls."---Gavin Jacobson, New Statesman"[A] magisterial history of postwar liberal political philosophy. . . . Forrester is a scholarly marvel in her combination of a writer’s eloquence, a historian’s eye for revelatory detail, and an activist’s commitment to social liberation. . . . In the Shadow of Justice a formidable intervention in the trajectory of contemporary political thought."---Vafa Ghazavi, The Philosopher"Exciting new leftish history."---Samuel Moyn, Commonweal"In the Shadow of Justice will particularly benefit scholars and students of philosophy, politics and history concerned with the future of political liberalism. [Forrester's] important work provides a unique resource for shedding light on the conceptual roots of modern political thought while at the same time disclosing its limits."---Rahel Süß, LSE Review of Books"An invaluable resource for any student of contemporary political philosophy. Clearly and engagingly written."---David Hoekema, Christian Century"Forrester’s excellent recent book…tells the story of how . . . Rawls’s highly intricate and deceptively simple brand of abstract liberal egalitarianism—first articulated in his A Theory of Justice in 1971—came to take over academic philosophy. . . . In reminding us that even political philosophers who claim to speak outside any particular time or place are, in fact, the product of a particular time and place, Forrester undoes the pretension to timelessness that Rawls claimed, at least for a time."---Susan McWilliams Barndt, Commonweal"A forceful, encyclopedic study of the confluence and contradictions of postwar liberalism, Anglo-American thought and John Rawls’s political philosophy."---Michael Eric Dyson, New York Times"Forrester is a scholarly marvel in her combination of a writer’s eloquence, a historian’s eye for revelatory detail, and an activist’s commitment to social liberation. [T]he trifecta makes In the Shadow of Justice a formidable intervention in the trajectory of contemporary political thought."---Vafa Ghazavi, The Philosopher"In her ingenious book, Forrester provides critical new insight both on Rawls’s political thought and on liberal egalitarianism. There are numerous things to commend: from the outstanding archival work to the penetrating and in-depth analysis of the many nuances of Rawls’s political philosophy. Forrester argues that uncovering the contingent nature in the development of liberal egalitarianism shows that we cannot take the main assumptions, premises, and arguments for granted. Forrester’s work is important in uncovering where many of these assumptions come from."---Henrik D. Kugelberg, Jurisprudence"Forrester’s impressive book contributes to our understanding of the modern discussion in ethics an political philosophy and is a must for anyone interested in modern philosophy. Her thorough survey of important contributions in the field is outstanding."---Göran Collste, Ethical Perspectives"A powerful reconstruction of Anglophone political philosophy."---Akira Inoue, Journal of the History of Philosophy
£29.75
Princeton University Press Prudes Perverts and Tyrants Platos Gorgias and
Book SynopsisIn recent years, most political theorists have agreed that shame shouldn't play any role in democratic politics because it threatens the mutual respect necessary for participation and deliberation. But Christina Tarnopolsky argues that not every kind of shame hurts democracy. In fact, she makes a powerful case that there is a form of shame essentiaTrade Review"Every once in a long while a book comes along that the reader finds so worthwhile, down to the smallest detail, that she painstakingly devours every line and every section, even those with which she finds herself in disagreement, and ultimately closes the book with a sigh of disappointment when the journey is done and the book ends. Such a book is ... Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants... This book will be an excellent addition to any philosopher's library, worthy as a graduate level text on ancient philosophy, and valuable for those readers interested in nuanced studies of the effects of the emotions in human societies and in politics. Regardless of whether the reader agrees with the twists and turns of Tarnopolsky's arguments, the journey will be well worth taking."--Wendy C. Hamblet, Philosophy in Review "Tarnopolsky presents many thought-provoking and helpful interpretations of Plato's Gorgias."--James H. Nichols, Jr., PolisTable of ContentsList of Tables ix Acknowledgments xi Introduction 1 Contemporary Attitudes toward Shame 1 The Theoretical Debates Surrounding Shame 2 Plato's Relevance to the Contemporary Politics of Shame 6 Plato's Gorgias and the Politics of Shame 16 Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants 21 PART ONE: Plato's Gorgias and the Athenian Politics of Shame 27 CHAPTER ONE: Shame and Rhetoric in Plato's Gorgias 29 Situating Plato's Gorgias within the Platonic Corpus 35 The Dual Character of the Socratic Elenchus 38 From Gorgianic Rhetoric to Platonic Rhetoric 41 CHAPTER TWO: Shaming Gorgias, Polus, and Callicles 56 The Refutation of Gorgias 61 The Refutation of Polus 65 The Refutation of Callicles 79 The Mechanisms of Shame 84 CHAPTER THREE: Plato on Shame in Democratic Athens 89 The Canonical View of Plato's Criticisms of Athens 90 Disrupting the Canon 91 Parrhe-sia as an Athenian Democratic Ideal 96 Parrhe-sia and Shame 98 The Structure of Shame 100 Flattering vs. Respectful Shame 104 Plato contra Tyrannical Democrats 110 CHAPTER FOUR: Socratic vs. Platonic Shame 114 Shame and Deception in Plato's Gorgias 114 The Myth as an Illustration of the Socratic Elenchus 120 Platonic Myth vs. Socratic Elenchus 126 Gregory Vlastos on Socratic and Platonic Irony 131 Alexander Nehamas on Socratic and Platonic Irony 133 Socratic vs. Platonic Irony in Plato's Gorgias 136 PART TWO: Plato's Gorgias and the Contemporary Politics of Shame 141 CHAPTER FIVE: Prudes, Perverts, and Tyrants: Plato and the Contemporary Politics of Shame and Civility 143 The Contemporary Politics of Shame and Civility 143 Michael Warner and the Politics of Shame 145 Jean Bethke Elshtain and the Politics of Civility 147 Elshtain and Warner: Finding a Common Ground 150 The Conceptual Confusions Surrounding Shame 151 Solving the Conceptual Confusions 153 Socratic Respectful vs. Flattering Shame 160 Platonic Respectful Shame and the Search for Consensus 167 CHAPTER SIX: What's So Negative about the "Negative" Emotions? 172 Defining the "Negative" Emotions 172 Rationality and the Emotions 178 Primitive vs. Advanced Emotions 183 The Positivity of Negativity 193 Bibliography 197 Index 211
£22.50
Princeton University Press Free Time
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Methodically and insightfully, [Rose] dismantles the assertion ... that we all choose our leisure patterns... Highly recommended."--Karen Shook, Times Higher EducationTable of ContentsAcknowledgments ix 1 Introduction 1 2 Leisure as a Specific Good 15 3 Free Time as a Resource 39 4 The Claim to Free Time 66 5 Shared Free Time 93 6 Free Time for Caregivers 112 7 Conclusion: Time for What We Will 127 Bibliography 147 Index 163
£31.50
Princeton University Press Why Tolerate Religion Updated Edition
Book SynopsisThis provocative book addresses one of the most enduring puzzles in political philosophy and constitutional theory--why is religion singled out for preferential treatment in both law and public discourse? Why are religious obligations that conflict with the law accorded special toleration while other obligations of conscience are not? In Why ToleraTrade ReviewOne of Choice's Outstanding Academic Titles for 2013 "Thought-provoking... Leiter brings an interdisciplinary perspective and insightful analysis to his perplexing subject."--Los Angeles Review of Books "A model of clarity and rigour and at points strikingly original, this is a book that anyone who thinks seriously about religion, ethics and politics will benefit from reading."--John Gray, New Statesman "A slim volume, deeply conversant with the literature in law and philosophy, and by turns bold, bracing and bruising, Why Tolerate Religion? should command the attention of anyone interested in the place of faith in the public arena."--Glenn C. Altschuler, Jerusalem Post "Although this is a rather bold and provocative thesis, Leiter's approach is highly nuanced and painstakingly thorough, as he patiently walks readers through each definition, consideration, and possible objection. The overall effect is a very impressively argued case."--Library Journal "Why Tolerate Religion? is a closely argued and thought-provoking examination of questions that will only become more important in our increasingly multicultural world."--Adam Kirsch, Barnes & Noble Review "Overall, Leiter's judicious and penetrating volume is an excellent example of how philosophy can be brought to bear on practical issues of the day."--Alex Miller, Morning Star "Why Tolerate Religion? is a readable book that exposes several tenuous assumptions underlying the predominant justifications for religious exemptions. At the same time, it provides a fresh and intuitive framework for analyzing conscience-based objections to facially neutral laws that should appeal to legal practitioners, jurists, and philosophers alike."--Harvard Law Review "Students and scholars likely will be citing Leiter's clear and powerful arguments for many years."--Choice "[E]legant and accessible ... straightforward and clear. Readers will find the book engaging and thought-provoking; yet Leiter's discussion is nonetheless philosophically sophisticated, incorporating nuanced considerations from legal theory, meta-ethics, and political philosophy. Most importantly, Leiter's book provides a sound basis for pursuing these crucial matters further."--Scott F Aikin, Philosophers' Magazine "Leiter's book is ... very readable and it avoids technical jargon as much as possible. It works very well as a challenge to those who are sympathetic to conceding some exemptions from generally applicable laws because of religious beliefs, because the burden of justifying such exemptions is placed squarely on those who propose them."--Desmond M. Clarke, Jurisprudence "[C]ompelling read ... makes for a fresh and lively contribution to this ongoing debate."--Journal of Applied Philosophy "Why Tolerate Religion? has a certain beauty in its brevity, austerity and aspiration to analytical rigor."--Russell Blackford, Free Inquiry "It is highly recommended to all those interested in the relationship between religion and the state. It will certainly leave its readers with much to ponder."--Jakub Urbaniak, Studia Historiae Ecclesiasticae "Brian Leiter's new book aims to be accessible to scholars outside of philosophy as well as to 'educated laypeople'. In my view, he succeeds in this endeavor. His book is very readable, and avoids unnecessary technicalities. The question Leiter addresses in his book ... is of interest not only to academic philosophers, but to everyone who is curious about questions concerning the societal function and role of religion, toleration, minority rights, and conscience."--Martin Sticker, Zeitschrift fuer philosophische Literatur "[A]n enjoyable read, accessible to the generally educated public but alive to a number of sophisticated philosophical ideas and distinctions, its prose crisp and straightforward, its attitude no-nonsense, its conclusion provocative, and its arguments clear, concise, and analytically rigorous."--Samuel Rickles, Philosophical Review "Leiter's book ... is highly recommended to all those interested in the relationship between religion and the state. It will certainly leave its readers with much to ponder."--Jakub Urbaniak, SOPHIA "Why Tolerate Religion is a very good book that should be of interest to a wide range of readers. Leiter addresses a clear and undeniably important question in a philosophically rigorous yet accessible way. The book will generate debate inside and outside academia, and I, for one, am looking forward to Leiter's future work on the issues he has helpfully and forcefully raised."--David Svolba, Science, Religion & CultureTable of ContentsPreface to the Paperback Edition ix Preface and Acknowledgments xvii Introduction 1 Chapter I Toleration 5 Chapter II Religion 26 Chapter III Why Tolerate Religion? 54 Chapter IV Why Respect Religion? 68 Chapter V The Law of Religious Liberty in a Tolerant Society 92 Notes 135 Selected Bibliography 175 Index 181
£17.09
Princeton University Press Ideas of Liberty in Early Modern Europe
Book SynopsisEurope's long sixteenth century--a period spanning the years roughly from the voyages of Columbus in the 1490s to the English Civil War in the 1640s--was an era of power struggles between avaricious and unscrupulous princes, inquisitions and torture chambers, and religious differences of ever more violent fervor. Ideas of Liberty in Early Modern EuTrade Review"Gatti offers a lucid primer of some famous and other less well known texts and debates of the period ... an eloquent analysis of the rich tradition of thinking about liberty in the early modern period."--Victoria Kahn, Times Literary Supplement "[An] illuminating book."--Jacqueline Broad, Times Higher Education "[Gatti] offers thorough, sweeping treatments of major figures in this period--Machiavelli, Luther, Shakespeare, Bruno, Milton--as well as many minor writers... Gatti helpfully situates all the discussions of the period in historical context. This book will be useful for upper-level students and scholars of the history of political thought."--J. Church, Choice "Ideas of Liberty is a learned, carefully wrought, and fine-grained study."--Henry C. Clark, Review of PoliticsTable of ContentsAcknowledgments vii Introduction 1 Chapter 1 Political Liberty Niccolo Machiavelli: Liberty and the Law 11 Niccolo Machiavelli: Liberty and Fortuna 16 Niccolo Machiavelli and Sir Thomas More 19 The Rule of the Prince 22 Chapter 2 Liberty and Religion The Bondage or the Freedom of the Will: Martin Luther and Erasmus of Rotterdam 31 "Of Our Own We Have Only Sin": John Calvin and the Problem of Heresy 40 Inquisition: The Trial of Giordano Bruno 54 Religion as Dogma, or Religion as Debate? Richard Hooker and Jacobus Arminius 65 Chapter 3 Libertas philosophandi, or the Liberty of Thought Between the Prince and Parliament 81 The New Drama: William Shakespeare 92 The New Science: From Giordano Bruno to Francis Bacon 99 The New Science: Galileo Galilei 103 Chapter 4 The Freedom of the Press The Problems of Writing History: From Jacques Auguste de Thou to Paolo Sarpi 117 The Search for New Liberties: John Milton 133 John Milton: Areopagitica 140 The Virtues of Schisms and Sects 149 Chapter 5 Epilogue Henry Neville, the Republic of Venice, and the "Glorious Revolution" of 1689 159 Conclusion 175 Notes 177 Bibliography 193 Index 207
£40.50
Princeton University Press The Quotable Machiavelli
Book SynopsisTrade Review"The Quotable Machiavelli feels like one of many attempts since the 16th century to rebuild his stature, though perhaps its purpose is simply pleasure. It's absorbing to pick your way through his ideas, absorbing his highly sophisticated view of Renaissance politics."---Robert Fulford, National PostTable of ContentsIntroduction xi Chronology xxxvii Note on the Texts xli I. Machiavelli on Himself, His Family, and Friends 1 II. Machiavelli Described by His Relatives, Friends,and Lovers 17 III. Man and Cosmos 25 Devils and Hell-Fortune-God's and the Heavens' Influence on Human Affairs-God's Mercy-Good and Evil-Prophecies-Purgatory-Return to Beginnings-The Universe, Its Hidden Power-The World and Its Eternity IV. The Human Condition 39 Antiquity and the Ancients-Avarice-Beasts-Bloodshed-Compassion-Concealment-Confession-Conscience-Courage (Animo)-Cowardice-Cruelty-Death-The Death Penalty-Deceit-Decline-Desire-Despair-Discourse-Disease-Dishonesty-The End Result-Error-Fault-Fear-Flattery-Fraud-Glory-Goals-The Good and Goodness-Greatness of Soul-Growth-Hatred-History-Honesty-Horror-Humility-Imitation-Infamy-Ingratitude-Insolence-Love-The Mind-Miracles-New Ways, New Continents-Old Times-Opportunity-Order and Disorder-Passions and Their Remedies-Patriotism-Peace-Prudence-Punishment-Rebirth (Renaissance)-Religion and the Reform of Religions-Saints-Science-Severity-Sin-Stupidity-Suspicion-Virtue-Women-Words V. Political Life 121 Accusations and Calumnies-Agrarian Law-Ambition-The Aristocracy-The Army and Soldiers-Artillery-Authority-Cavalry-Cities-Citizenship-Colonies-Constitution-Corruption-Dictatorship-Disorders-Empires and Emperors-Equality-Errors-Expansion-Extraordinary Measures-Fortresses-TheFounders and Reformers of States-Gold-Gonfalonier(Highest Magistrate of the Republic of Florence)-Government-Laws-Liberality-Liberty and Its Safekeeping-Ministers-Mixed Government-The Multitude-Opinion, Freedom of-The People-PopularGovernment-Poverty-The Prince-Public Honors-Republics-Revolutions and Reforms-Servitude-Social Conflicts-The State-Tribunes of the People-Tyranny-Tyranny and License-War VI. Machiavelli on His Contemporaries 217 Alexander VI, Pope-Giovanpaolo Baglioni-Cesare Borgia, the Duke Valentino-Ferdinand of Aragon, King of Spain-Italian Princes-Julius II, Pope-Lorenzo de'Medici (the Magnificent)-Lorenzo de' Medici, Duke of Urbino-Louis XII, King of France-Maximilian I, Emperor of Germany-Girolamo Savonarola (Friar)-Caterina Sforza, Countess of Forli-Piero Soderini VII. Past and Present 237 Achilles-Agathocles of Syracuse-Alexander the Great-Aristotle-Athens and Sparta-Cicero-Constantinople-Cyrus, King of Persia-Dante Alighieri-King David (Old Testament)-Cosimo de'Medici-Giovanni de' Medici-Florence-France and the French-Germany and the German Free Cities-Italy-Julius Caesar-Livy (Roman Historian)-Moses-Plutarch-Rome and the Roman People-Romulus-Turks and the Turkish Empire-Venice Selected Bibliography 287 Credits 297 Index 301
£18.00
Princeton University Press On Mercy
Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of New Statesman's Books of the Year 2019""In On Mercy, Malcolm Bull conducts a clever thought experiment on the question of whether mercy might not only be reconciled with justice but could displace it at the center of our political life."---David A. Skeel, Wall Street Journal"While Bull’s book is charmingly erudite . . . it is also an important work of political philosophy."---Joe Humphreys, Irish Times"Subtle, scholarly, and interesting. . . .in [this] book, mercy becomes a concept that can illuminate our history, our present, and the dilemmas on the horizon."---Chiara Ricciardone, The Philosopher"Malcolm Bull’s On Mercy . . . excavates the virtue of mercy as a means to dethroning the supreme values of our age that have failed us."---Thomas Meaney, New Statesman"Bull’s provocative essay provides fresh insights into some foundational issues in political philosophy and mounts a new and engaging challenge to the dominant justice-centered approaches to politics."---Steven Tudor, Criminal Law and Philosophy"Bull makes a more far-reaching case, though, than merely to plead for the significance of mercy-considerations to the political arguments of our age. . . . [A] fascinating essay."---Christopher Brooke, Mind"In short, Bull has given us a fascinating and helpful account of a topic that has been neglected within modern political science. It will repay careful study. And if the going gets difficult, Sunstein’s slim volume will provide light relief."---Jonathan Warner, European Legacy
£29.75
Princeton University Press Nietzsches Great Politics
Book SynopsisTrade Review"The task that Hugo Drochon sets himself is to reinsert some political content into Nietzsche and show that he had a systematic political theory. The result is a superb case of deep intellectual renewal and the most important book to have been written about him in the past few years."--Gavin Jacobson, New Statesman "This book is not so much a reclamation of his [Nietzsche's] thinking on the subject as a reconstruction of the development of political thinking in the philosopher's works, so often missed by those who require thinking and expression less profound to make sense of such. Coherent, detailed and balanced."--Daniel Binney, Times Higher Education "The book achieves its stated goal with aplomb as it follows the development of political ideas in Nietzsche's works, and it deserves to become a standard reference text for advanced students and Nietzsche scholars."--Mina Mitreva, Past Imperfect "In this compelling and accessible study, Drochon--a historian of 19th- and 20th-century political thought--argues the affirmative case, contending that Nietzsche articulated a 'great politics' centered on the unification of Continental Europe under the aegis of a cultivated, interbred class of superior individuals who would ultimately lead a geopolitical struggle against Great Britain and Russia for world supremacy... One can find lots of books on Nietzsche, but this one stands out for its clarity and excellence."--Choice "[Nietzsche's Great Politics] is among the most illuminating studies that have been written on the topic of Nietzsche's political thought... Those who confidently maintain that Nietzsche has no 'politics' will be forced, if not to abandon their view completely, then seriously to reconsider it."--Andrew Huddleston, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews "A thought-provoking contribution to the debate over Nietzsche's politics... [It] contains plenty to interest the contemporary Nietzsche scholar, providing insight into Nietzsche's political statements and offering a tantalising glimpse into his preparations for a great role in the politics of his age."--Simon Townsend, Contemporary Political TheoryTable of ContentsACKNOWLEDGMENTS ix EDITIONS AND TRANSLATIONS USED xiii ABBREVIATIONS xv INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 1. THE GREEKS 24 SOCRATES AND GREEK CULTURE 26 PLATO'S LEGISLATIVE MISSION 36 CONCLUSION 47 CHAPTER 2. THE STATE 49 WAGNER AND SLAVERY 52 "THE GREEK STATE" 55 THE DECAY OF THE MODERN STATE 60 BEYOND THE MODERN STATE 64 CONCLUSION 67 CHAPTER 3. DEMOCRACY 71 DEMOCRACY IN THE KAISERREICH 75 DEMOCRACY AND ARISTOCRACY 78 MISARCHISM, CHRISTIANITY, AND HERD MORALITY 80 DEGENERATION AND THE GOOD EUROPEAN 82 CASTE SOCIETY 88 SLAVERY 91 CONCLUSION 97 CHAPTER 4. PHILOSOPHY AND POLITICS 105 THE WILL TO POWER 106 THE ETERNAL RETURN 110 THE OVERMAN 115 CONCLUSION: POLITICAL PERFECTIONISM 126 CHAPTER 5. REVALUATION 129 NIETZSCHE'S NACHLASS AND HIS LAST WORKS 135 THE PASSAGE A L'ACTE 144 CONCLUSION 151 CHAPTER 6. GREAT POLITICS 153 PETTY POLITICS 156 GREAT POLITICS 160 RELEARNING POLITICS 165 THE WAR OF SPIRITS 170 CONCLUSION 176 CONCLUSION: NIETZSCHE NOW 180 BIBLIOGRAPHY 185 INDEX 197
£40.50
Princeton University Press The Pathologies of Individual Freedom Hegels Social Theory
Trade Review"Axel Honneth's book is stimulating, insightful, philosophically interesting, and analytically sophisticated. Its main contribution lies in its sympathetic, philosophically acute reconstruction of Hegel's position on individual freedom, which is made with an eye to lending it contemporary relevance. The book succeeds admirably and makes a great contribution to the English-language literature on Hegel."—Fred Neuhouser, Barnard CollegeTable of ContentsAcknowledgments vii I: Hegel's Philosophy of Right as a Theory of Justice 1 The Idea of Individual Freedom: Intersubjective Conditions of Autonomy 7 "Right" in the Philosophy of Right: Necessary Spheres of Self-Realization 18 II: The Connection between the Theory of Justice and the Diagnosis of the Age 25 Suffering from Indeterminacy: Pathologies of Individual Freedom 28 "Liberation" from Suffering: The Therapeutic Significance of "Ethical Life" 42 III: The Theory of Ethical Life as a Normative Theory of Modernity 48 Self-Realization and Recognition: Conditions of "Ethical Life" 49 The Over-Institutionalization of "Ethical Life": Problems of the Hegelian Approach 63 Index 81
£18.00
Princeton University Press How We Hope
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Inspired by her work with terminally ill cancer patients, Martin provides a valuable analysis of hope that makes excellent use of the tools of analytic philosophy, recent work in neuropsychology, and the philosophies of Immanuel Kant and Gabriel Marcel."--Choice "[A] short but substantial tome... Anyone who is interested in the ethics of hope will find a great deal of valuable insight in this book."--Ben Sherman, Philosophy in Review "Martin not only insightfully advances the philosophical literature on hope, but also, maybe more importantly, provides substantial food for thought to anyone whose philosophical interests encompass desires and motivations."--Rachel Fredericks, Mind "Martin's work is a timely and instructive contribution to a rapidly expanding literature on hope."--Aaron D. Cobb, Journal of Moral PhilosophyTable of ContentsAcknowledgments ix INTRODUCTION What Is Hope? 1 Questions about Hope 1 The Orthodox Definition and Its Critics 4 Hope as a Syndrome 6 The Incorporation Analysis 7 Summary of Chapters 8 CHAPTER 1 Beyond the Orthodox Definition of Hope 11 The Orthodox Definition in the Modern Period 11 The Orthodox Definition in Recent Philosophy 13 Challenge Cases 14 First Analysis: Luc Bovens and Mental Imaging 17 Second Analysis: Ariel Meirav and External Factors 19 Third Analysis: Philip Pettit and Cognitive Resolve 20 Final Analysis: Incorporation 24 Hopeful Thoughts: Fantasy 25 Hopeful Feelings: Anticipation 29 Summary 34 CHAPTER 2 Incorporation 35 Understanding Mental States through Their Fundamental Norms 36 Two Constraints on Reasons 38 Normative Governance Requires Deliberative Responsiveness 38 Deliberation Constrains Reasons 41 The Licensing Stance 44 The Transparency of Doxastic Deliberation to Evidence 46 Putting Transparency and Deliberation Constrains Reasons Together 48 Practical Deliberation about the Licensing Stance 48 The Other Part of the Incorporation Element: Treating Desire as a Practical Reason 52 The Inadequacy of Monist Theories of Motivation 54 The Dualist Theory: Subrational and Rational Motivational Representations 58 Hope as Incorporation 61 Hoping and End-Setting 64 Cases: Hoping without End-Setting 66 The End-Setting Conception's Inability to Accommodate These Cases 67 Conclusion: A Unified Theory of Hope and the Worry about Excessive Reflectiveness 69 CHAPTER 3 Suicide and Sustenance 72 Virtue and Sustenance 72 The First Extreme: Aquinas and Irascible Hope 75 The Thomistic "Inner Cathedral" 76 The Concupiscible and Irascible Passions 77 The Second Extreme: Calhoun and Seconding Practical Commitment 82 Hopeful Fantasies and Sustenance 85 Contingent Sustenance 91 An Example: "Self-Help" and Self-Sabotage 94 Summary 96 CHAPTER 4 Faith and Sustenance without Contingency 98 Chief Plenty Coups and Unimaginable Hope 98 Kant on the Highest Good and Morally Obligatory Hope 101 The Transformation of Hope into Faith 105 Marcel's Hope 108 Grounding Hope in Love 111 The Possibility of Secular Faith 114 Summary 117 CHAPTER 5 Normative Hope 118 Strawson and the Reactive Attitudes 118 Mapping the Territory: Interpersonal Relations 121 Gratitude, Disappointment, and Normative Hope 125 Hope for the Vicious 136 Summary 140 CONCLUSION Human Passivity, Agency, and Hope 141 Index 147
£19.80
Princeton University Press Moral Imagination
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewShortlisted for the 2015 PEN/Diamonstein-Spielvogel Award for the Art of the Essay, Pen American Center One of The Times Higher Education Supplement's Books of the Year 2014, chosen by Jane Shaw "A historically informed examination of moral imagination and human sympathy, as seen through the lives of such figures as Edmund Burke, Mohandas K. Gandhi and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr."--Sewell Chan, New York Times "[T]hey shed much light on the frame of mind in which Bromwich approached the ambiguous figure of Burke in his biography, and even more on how Bromwich is relevant to the politics of our own times... Those who read these essays alongside Bromwich's account of Burke's intellectual and political career will find their eye caught by three topics, all with Burkean overtones, deeply relevant to the present, and handled with Bromwich's characteristic sharpness... Bromwich is particularly sharp on the way government spokesmen wrap the realities of massacre, torture, and gratuitous cruelty in euphemism... The central essays of Bromwich's book are more meditative, and none the worse for it... The final chapter, 'Comments on Perpetual War,' displays Bromwich's skills as a critic in the tradition of Hazlitt and Orwell."--Alan Ryan, New York Review of Books "[A] rich and memorable book... Bromwich appears here in his well-established role as a public intellectual, as civilized as he is trenchant, observing with a mixture of dark wit and moral exasperation diverse aspects of the contemporary American scene. He has a good essay, both horrifying and funny, on the destruction of privacy in the modern United States; a remarkable essay on the psychopathology of political ambition; a fine piece questioning 'cultural identity' as a liberal shibboleth."--Seamus Perry, Times Literary Supplement "Moral Imagination brings together a dozen pieces published over the past twenty years in which [Bromwich] mostly explores the minds of people he admires. There is a particularly fine discussion of Lincoln and the constitutional necessity of the Civil War. There are also spirited attacks on the culture of celebrity and on the chicanery of Dick Cheney, which will have most readers whooping."--Ferdinand Mount, London Review of Books "Bibliophiles, scholars and concerned citizens--all will find provocation and enlightenment here."--Kirkus Reviews "Bromwich delivers a probing and incisive collection of essays about culture, politics, imagination, and the war on terror... Moral Imagination is an eloquent, demanding, and fiercely polemical work likely to appeal most to independent-minded readers and scholars alike."--Lee Polevoi, Foreword Reviews "Bromwich as a stylist belongs to the older, better class... [Moral Imagination] is clearly a product of ... bracing self-reflection."--Helen Andrews, Books & Culture "Moral Imagination is an important book... [T]he patient reader will be well rewarded by the author's many insights into some of our nation's most pressing concerns."--Walter G. Moss, History News Network "In this collection of essays, Bromwich eschews identity politics and multiculturalism from a 'left' perspective, preferring instead the concept he articulates with the book's title: 'moral imagination.'... These essays are demanding but well worth the effort."--Choice "Bromwich's book of essays is rich, well-cooked and a most satisfying dish."--Bob Lane, Metapsychology Online ReviewsTable of ContentsPreface xi ONE 1 Moral Imagination 3 2 A Dissent on Cultural Identity 40 3 The Meaning of Patriotism in 1789 70 TWO 4 Lincoln and Whitman as Representative Americans 91 5 Lincoln's Constitutional Necessity 118 6 Shakespeare, Lincoln, and Ambition 160 THREE 7 The American Psychosis 183 8 How Publicity Makes People Real 222 9 The Self-Deceptions of Empire 250 FOUR 10 What Is the West? 273 11 Holy Terror and Civilized Terror 287 12 Comments on Perpetual War 304 Cheney's Law 304 Euphemism and Violence 310 William Safire: Wars Made out of Words 324 What 9/11 Makes Us Forget 330 The Snowden Case 334 Index 345
£19.00
Princeton University Press Teaching Plato in Palestine
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewWinner of the 2015 Mavis Gallant Prize for Non-Fiction, Quebec Writers' Federation One of The Australian's Books of the Year 2015 (selected by Aminatta Forna) Longlisted for the 2016 Sheikh Zayed Book Award in Arabic Culture in Other Languages "Engagingly anecdotal."--Peter Adamson, Times Literary Supplement "What unites [the classroom conversations] is [Fraenkel's] skill in the art of posing questions designed to perplex and provoke. He lets us overhear the Socratic form of dialogue that Plato invented and that Mr. Fraenkel practices much to his students' pleasure, and ours."--Benjamin Balint, Wall Street Journal "Fresh, iconoclastic, stimulating debates."--Kirkus "The author urges religious people who aren't bound by literalism, secularists who don't dismiss all religion as anachronism, and inquisitive types of all persuasions to try something. First, accept freedom of expression, recognize your fallibility and prepare yourself to revise received assumptions. And then plunge into debates about morality, faith, governance, rights and other matters that divide us ... the discussions you engage in, as suggested by his and his students' experiences, will likely broaden your horizons and nourish your intellect."--Rayyan Al-Shawaf, Toronto Star "If you read one book published this year, then you might make it Teaching Plato in Palestine: Philosophy in a Divided World."--Aminatta Forna, The Independent "Teaching Plato in Palestine is a slim, straightforward yet surprisingly rich work of philosophy that will intrigue the amateur as well as the expert."--Sarah Gustafson, Key Reporter "Carlos Fraenkel ... persuasively shows the value of philosophical work that engages the broader public and other cultures... Each [episode in the book] is beautifully described and the results are utterly captivating."--Daniel A. Bell, Literary Review of Canada "A refreshing perspective."--Frank Freeman, The Hedgehog Review "A lively, informative book."--Alexander Orwin, Claremont Review of Books "Fraenkel's commitment to democratizing philosophy is both authentic and admirable. His book reminds us that philosophy is a practice of educating citizens, a dialogical quest for mutual understanding. It is a timely reminder that engaging others over disputed values and beliefs requires not only skill in argument but also an openness toward different views and a commitment to the shared pursuit of truth. This remarkable experiment in practicing Socratic dialogue in a divided world proves that we need philosophy now more than ever, especially when ideology and nihilism threaten to undermine any ethical culture of debate."--Robert Sinnerbrink, Los Angeles Review of BooksTable of ContentsForeword by Michael Walzer ix Preface xiii Part I 1 Teaching Plato in Palestine 3 2 Teaching Maimonides in Makassar 30 3 Spinoza in Shtreimels: An Underground Seminar 53 4 Citizen Philosophers in Brazil 79 5 Word-Warriors: Philosophy in Mohawk Land 100 Part II 6 Diversity and Debate 139 Acknowledgments 189 Notes 193 Bibliography 205 Index 215
£18.00
Princeton University Press Politics and Vision Continuity and Innovation in
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewWinner of the 2006 David and Elaine Spitz Prize, Conference for the Study of Political Thought "[T]he original edition ... provided the most impressive synoptic interpretation of politics by any recent Western thinker. Measured, assured, and resolutely independent, it was also wonderfully lacking in self-importance... [T]hat first book remains just as illuminating and every bit as imposing; but it is now accompanied by a second and very different book... Its message is chilling ... that politics itself, in its generous Western understanding, is well on the way to being eliminated from the experience of human beings. Each of these books is a remarkable achievement."--John Dunn, Times Higher Education Supplement
£20.90
Princeton University Press Victorian Pain
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Victorian Pain is a clear-eyed, beautifully written investigation of the role and uses of pain in the work of John Stuart Mill, Harriet Martineau, Charlotte Brontë, Charles Darwin and Thomas Hardy. . . . No one who is fortunate enough to read this book will look at the works it discusses in the same way again." * Times Literary Supplement *"Ablow explores the idea of pain in Victorian thought and literature, navigating between understanding pain as private, incommunicable, and pre-social (theorized most prominently in Elaine Scarry's The Body in Pain, CH, Jan'86) and theories of pain as mediated by language and produced through social life." * Choice *Table of ContentsContents Acknowledgments ix Introduction Pain, Subjectivity, and the Social 1 1 John Stuart Mill and the Poetics of Social Pain 24 2 Harriet Martineau and the Impersonality of Pain 48 3 Pain and Privacy in Villette 72 4 Charles Darwin's Affect Theory 93 5 Wounded Trees, Abandoned Boots 114 Afterword The Fantasy of the Speaking Body 135 Notes 141 Works Cited 173 Index 187
£40.50
Princeton University Press Private Government
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Private Government is a welcome and important call to bring workplace governance back into political theory and discourse, and should be taken seriously if we are to promote greater democracy in the workplace." * Times Literary Supplement *"Elizabeth Anderson is a philosopher on the warpath. Her Tanner Lectures . . . take aim at the unelected, arbitrary and dictatorial power that employers, particularly in the US where labour laws are flimsy, hold over their work-forces. . . . [Anderson's argument has] subtlety and force."---Philip Roscoe, Times Higher Education"In Private Government, Elizabeth Anderson . . . explores how the discipline of work has itself become a form of tyranny, documenting the expansive power that firms now wield over their employees in everything from how they dress to what they tweet. . . . [Private Government] highlight[s] the dramatic and alarming changes that work has undergone over the past century--insisting that, in often unseen ways, the changing nature of work threatens the fundamental ideals of democracy: equality and freedom."---Miya Tokumitsu, , The New Republic"[Private Government] gives a clear, powerful argument for ideas that many people will have already had in only inchoate form."---Nate Holdren, History News Network"[Private Government] is a well-documented, captivating discussion that should be addressed in an interdisciplinary manner, and an excellent starting point to make that happen." * Choice *"In Private Government, Anderson explores a striking American contradiction. On the one hand, we are a freedom-obsessed society, wary of government intrusion into our private lives; on the other, we allow ourselves to be tyrannized by our bosses, who enjoy broad powers of micromanagement and coercion."---Joshua Rothman, NewYorker.com"Elizabeth Anderson’s bold Private Government is a firm foundation for twenty-first-century civic education in workplace democracy. Anderson exposes the inevitably political dimensions of work. And she leaves us in no doubt that for employees the workplace is tyrannical, ruled by the whims of exploitative and mercurial bosses."---Frank Pasquale, The Hedgehog Review"I fully acknowledge that Private Government is a significant work that could potentially reorient the political theory of economic institutions."---Uğur Aytaç, International Dialogue"Private Government demonstrates the attributes that have made Anderson one of the most compelling philosophers of our time. . . . It is, in short, deeply humane, helping us think more clearly about who we want to become, as individuals and in our· collective lives together. To my mind, it represents the best of political philosophy.”"---Vafa Ghazavi, Oxford Review of Books"Private Government is an important and timely contribution to contemporary political theory, especially for anyone thinking about freedom in the workplace or about reforming or replacing existing economic institutions."---Paul Raekstad, KrisisTable of ContentsIntroduction vii Stephen Macedo Author's Preface xix 1 When the Market Was "Left" 1 2 Private Government 37 3 Learning from the Levellers? Ann Hughes 75 4 Market Rationalization David Bromwich 89 5 Help Wanted: Subordinates Niko Kolodny 99 6 Work Isn't So Bad after All Tyler Cowen 108 7 Reply to Commentators Elizabeth Anderson 119 Notes 145 Contributors 183 Index 185
£999.99
Princeton University Press The Infidel and the Professor
Book SynopsisThe story of the greatest of all philosophical friendships--and how it influenced modern thought David Hume is widely regarded as the most important philosopher ever to write in English, but during his lifetime he was attacked as the Great Infidel for his skeptical religious views and deemed unfit to teach the young. In contrast, Adam Smith wasTrade Review"One of The Australian Review’s 2017 Books of the Year""One of The Guardian’s Best Books of 2017""Selected for Bloomberg View’s “Must-Reads of 2017: From Space to Chinese Noir”""One of Project Syndicate’s Best Reads in 2017 (chosen by Kaushik Basu)""Shortlisted for the 2018 Ralph Waldo Emerson Award, Phi Beta Kappa Society""A wonderfully written book about a beautiful friendship."---Tyler Cowen, Bloomberg View"Dennis Rasmussen . . . tells the story of Smith and Hume's bond, arguing convincingly and engagingly that there is ‘no higher example of a philosophical friendship in the entire Western tradition.’"---Ruth Scurr, Wall Street Journal"Rasmussen tells an engaging and sometimes moving story of how the friendship between Smith and David Hume shaped, and was shaped by, their attempt to comprehend the rapid development of the social and political order under which we still live."---Alexander Douglas, Times Literary Supplement"Lively and accessible--of broad interest to readers in philosophy, economics, political science, and other disciplines." * Kirkus *"Masterly. . . . Easy to digest and smart. Recommended."---Mark Spencer, Library Journal"In The Infidel and the Professor: David Hume, Adam Smith, and the Friendship that Shaped Modern Thought, Dennis Rasmussen . . . tells the story of their friendship well. Fourteen nicely-judged chapters take the reader through the overlapping lives of the two men, including such incidents as Hume's notorious falling-out with Rousseau, through to the natural climax of their friendship at Hume’s death, and Smith’s own demise 14 years later. . . . A short and lively book that sustains the interest not merely of the general reader but the specialist to the end. That is a considerable achievement."---Jesse Norman, Prospect"[Rasmussen] deftly examines not only Hume and Smith's personal relationship, but also the indispensable part that they played in shaping the Scottish Enlightenment. The result is a valuable study of the rise of the liberal tradition."---Jacob Heilbrunn, National Interest"The Infidel and the Professor is a lean, easy to digest read that is rich in interesting detail. It is anchored in weighty scholarship but not burdened by excessive demonstrations of it. . . . [Rasmussen] makes the distinctive qualities of each more evident. Pick up his book and you might find yourself agreeing with Hume that ‘reading and sauntering and lownging and dozing, which I call thinking, is my supreme Happiness'."---Julian Baggini, Literary Review"What his book does offer . . . is a clearer, more exhaustive picture of the common ground that existed between the two thinkers, a map of the intersections, echoes and mirroring perspectives that connect their works. The Infidel and the Professor is written in a style that makes it accessible to non-specialists, who can discover through it the story of two exceptional and very engaging personalities. But it is also of interest for those who are already familiar with Hume's and Smith’s lives and works, as it allows us to see them as part of a collective intellectual project. Above all, it reminds us of what the social sciences were originally meant to be: a broad critical reflection on the condition of human beings exposed to the bewildering transformations that modernity brought to their lives."---Biancamaria Fontana, Times Higher Education"As a total Hume fan, I enjoyed reading it, and it’s a well-written book. You don’t need to be an expert on either [Hume or Smith] to enjoy it, and get some flavour of the milieu of the Scottish Enlightenment."---Diane Coyle, Enlightened Economist"In addition to painting a vivid portrait of the intellectual life of 18th-century Scotland, Professor Rasmussen provides a road map of the development of Smith's ideas based on his personal history and the broader political, social, theological and academic environments. [His] greatest contribution, however, is to shed new light on the surprising depth and nature of the intellectual and personal influence of the radical skeptic philosopher David Hume on Smith. Touching and illuminating."---Jonathan A. Knee, New York Times"The best authoritative scholarly book on David Hume and Adam Smith published in the last 5 years. It is destined to be the classic book of those times."---Gavin Kennedy, Adam Smith's Lost Legacy"The Infidel and the Professor shone a deserved spotlight on David Hume and Adam Smith."---Julian Baggini, The Guardian"This is a well-written and well-researched history. It rewards a careful reading. . . . I recommend this book highly."---John Mullen, Metapsychology"The Infidel and the Professor, [Rasmussen’s] account of a 'friendship that changed modern thought', is a charming work. Our politicians would benefit from reading it and so, frankly, would you."---Alex Massie, The Times"Rasmussen has written an excellent book which offers a clear account of the ideas of Smith and Hume, and celebrates the importance of philosophical friendship."---Robin Downie, Philosophy"Wonderful. . . . [This] book should prove to be an indispensable starting point for future inquiries into Hume and Smith’s personal and philosophical relationship."---Erik W. Matson, Review of Austrian Economics"Rasmussen’s story about this strong and stable friendship will be engaging for those who are unfamiliar with Hume’s entertaining letters or Smith’s personal quirks, and it is a valuable contribution for scholars working on the philosophical views of each."---Lauren Kopajtic, Journal of the History of Philosophy"A sympathetic account of the closeness of two of the world’s greatest thinkers and the warmth of the affection that he evokes is a fine testament to their friendship and his writing."---Craig Smith, Perspectives on Politics"Rasmussen is at his interpretive best here, and his reading of how these events affected the friendship between Hume and Smith is both novel and persuasive."---John Rick, Reading Religion"[N]ot a few times did I mark in the margins a thread of inquiry I should like to pull on in the future, using The Infidel and the Professoras a starting point. I do not doubt but it will be likewise stimulating for you."---Edward Austin Middleton, EH.net"This original, elegantly written, compelling essay, which combines textual analysis with a contextual approach, is likely to have a momentous impact on the historiography of the Scottish Enlightenment and of the Age of Enlightenment as a whole."---Diego Lucci, Journal of Ecclesiastical History"Compelling . . . gripping."---James R. Otteson, History of Political Economy"Rasmussen’s beautifully written book is the kind of work that any serious David Hume and Adam Smith scholars might have once or twice dreamed of writing."---Tatsuya Sakamoto, Journal of the History of Economic Thought"An excellent introduction for those coming to Hume and Smith for the first time."---Ralph McLean, Journal of the Edinburgh Bibliograpical Society"Rasmussen succeeds not only in uncovering the uniquely intimate friendship between Hume and Smith among the group of like-minded literati who produced the Scottish Enlightenment, but a kind of inter-generational ‘passing of the baton’ from Hume (eleven years older) to his younger colleague."---Patrick Madigan, Heythrop Journal"Admirable. . . . Rasmussen’s book is to be highly recommended for the legion of readers of Hume . . . and Smith."---Peter Loptson, European Legacy
£22.50
Princeton University Press The Opinion of Mankind
Book SynopsisTrade Review"[An] excellent book." * Survival: Global Politics and Strategy *"True to his promise in the introduction, Sagar’s careful historical analysis recovers arguments that have not lost their interest and urgency. The book is important reading for anyone interested in the political theory of the period or the historical background of current trends towards 'realism' in political theory."---Clifton Mark, Political Theory"[A] scholarly and provocative study." * Journal of Markets & Morality *"The Opinion of Mankind is a major addition to Hanoverian historiography, of great interest not only to scholars in the field but also to graduate students wishing to gain a deeper understanding of the Scottish contribution to enlightenment political literature."---Karl W. Schweizer, European Legacy
£40.50
Princeton University Press Our Great Purpose
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Ryan Patrick Hanley has provided a succinct, witty and informative work on the relevance of Adam Smith today, mercifully released from the old 'father of capitalism' misrepresentation. . . . An excellent primer on the true Smith."---Stuart Kelly, Scotland on Sunday"[Adam] Smith had a way of pulling all aspects of human society together, from eating and drinking with friends to trading on the stock exchange. To separate them destroys the larger picture. . . . While Smith never advocated 'a single best way for all people to live,' . . . [he] deftly connected all human activity into a single, philosophical portrait, and Our Great Purpose makes a compelling case for us to study it closely."---David J. Davis, Wall Street Journal"An accessible, erudite, and concise introduction to Adam Smith in full, the moral philosopher of wisdom and prudence."---Jordan Ballor"Hanley is a distinguished political scientist at Boston College who has specialized in Smith; here in thirty short chapters he concentrates his accumulated expertize to deliver an Ariadne’s thread to guide the reader through the multiple issues Smith introduces and explores. . . . This should be passed out to all beginning students of Economics."---Patrick Madigan, Heythrop Journal"An essential text of practical wisdom."---David Lorimer, Paradigm Explorer"This excellent book deserves a wide audience and should be required reading for every college freshman."---J. H. Spence, Choice Reviews"A gem of a book, offering fresh insights into Smith’s writings and drawing holistic connections that make his philosophy come alive."---Jonathan Wight, The American Economist
£14.24
Princeton University Press Theology and the Scientific Imagination
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Theology and the Scientific Imagination should be read by every historian of science. I can also hardly imagine a philosopher of science who would remain indifferent to the roots of modern thinking. The reading of this book gives one a deep intellectual pleasure: to follow adventures in ideas is like experiencing the adventures themselves." —Michael Heller, Review of Metaphysics"A bold study of ideas . . . bristling with insight and perceptive reinterpretation of familiar episodes in the history of natural philosophy." —David C. Lindberg, Journal of the History of Medicine"Powerful. . . . Liberation from naive conceptions of historical continuity gives Funkenstein leave to concentrate on a finely nuanced exegesis of those philosophers who fall within his purview. The result is a work of discernment and distinction." —J. H. Brooke, Times Higher Education Supplement
£37.80
Princeton University Press The Power of Cute
Book SynopsisTrade Review"As a playful riposte to our self-conscious, drearily introspective age, The Power of Cute is rather more savvy than its sweetly diminutive form suggests."---Frankie McCoy, Standpoint"[Simon May] posits that our mania for cute can have sinister repercussions, and might even explain the rise of Donald Trump."---Kate Wills, Evening Standard
£15.19
Princeton University Press Hannah Arendt and Isaiah Berlin
Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of Bloomberg’s Best Nonfiction Books of 2021""Shortlisted for the Gladstone Book Prize, Royal Historical Society""Shortlisted for the ECPR Political Theory Prize, European Consortium for Political Research""[A] path-breaking study. . . . The hitherto unexplored relationship between these two giants is fascinating not just for its simmering acrimony but because, as a pair, they are as much alike as they are antipodes."---Norman Lebrecht, Wall Street Journal"An impeccably researched work, providing lucid explanation of the political thought of both Arendt and Berlin, and successfully brings the arguments of both (and their flaws) into sharp relief."---Caroline Ashcroft, Perspectives on Politics"The tone of the book is thoughtful and equable; the writing is admirably clear; and Hiruta certainly provides a fair and detailed chronology of the Arendt/Berlin encounters and of Berlin’s various expressions of hostility."---Jeremy Waldron, Society"Contextualized, dialogical, and even-handed."---Richard Shorten, The Review of Politics"Historically careful and theoretically rich."---Shmuel Lederman, German Studies Review"[An] even-handed study. . . .The book sheds a great deal of light on the protagonists and on essential historical and political issues so significant for our time." * Paradigm Explorer *
£34.20
Princeton University Press Free Time
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Methodically and insightfully, [Rose] dismantles the assertion . . . that we all choose our leisure patterns. . . . Highly recommended."---Karen Shook, Times Higher Education"An excellent and highly persuasive book. Lucidly written, philosophically rich, and rigorously argued, it should become an essential point of reference for future work on leisure and distributive justice."---Samuel Arnold, Journal of Politics
£19.80
Princeton University Press Just Giving
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Inside Philanthropy's Philanthropy Critic of 2018""One of the LSE Marshall Institute's Books of 2019""A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year""Surveying philanthropy from ancient Athens to the modern-day Rockefeller Foundation, and political philosophers from John Stuart Mill to John Rawls, Stanford political science professor Reich . . . mounts a wide-ranging critique of charity and the government preferments that subsidize it. . . . A lucid, thought-provoking analysis of the public impact of charity." * Publishers Weekly *"Critics take aim at government policy when it fails, in their view, to sufficiently encourage donations to charity. In Just Giving, Rob Reich . . . argues that a more fundamental question needs to be asked: Why should government policies encourage philanthropy at all?"---Leslie Lenkowsky, Wall Street Journal"In this erudite study, Stanford University political philosopher Rob Reich quotes . . . gems from the history of ideas to explore what he calls the 'plutocratic bias' inherent in large-scale philanthropy today. He treats readers to rich insights from enlightenment philosophers onwards who have criticised the assumption that mega-giving from the mega-rich is something to celebrate."---Linsey McGoey, Times Higher Education"An instant classic."---David Callahan, Inside Philanthropy"Reich judiciously weighs the philosophical pros and cons of tax-subsidised philanthropy."---Edward Luce, Financial Times"It is well-written with plenty of supporting evidence, and interesting philosophical discussions." * Pennsylvania Literary Journal *"An elegant critique of philanthropy as enacted in the modern state." * LSE The Marshall Institute *"In this groundbreaking monograph, Rob Reich provides the first book‐length political theory of philanthropy. Against the widespread folk view that philanthropy is an unqualified good, Reich argues that certain forms of philanthropy can exacerbate inequality and threaten democratic ideals . . . [it] is an instant classic." * Political Science Quarterly *"Just Giving rigorously documents the power grabs, antidemocratic dominance, and the warehouse-ing of philanthropic gifts to take advantage of tax breaks . . . everyone should read this book— and everyone should be angry." * Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly *"[Just Giving] seamlessly combines philosophical rigor with actionable policy implications. The book is an instant classic: it opens up an entirely new research field within political theory, along with new opportunities for cooperation between normative theorists and empirical political scientists. Reich should be commended for his achievement.—Gordon Arlen, Political Science Quarterly "---Gordon Arlen, Political Science Quarterly
£29.75
Princeton University Press Immigration and Freedom
Book Synopsis
£29.75
Princeton University Press Why Nationalism
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Interesting and provocative. . . . Highly ambitious."---Jonathan Derbyshire, Financial Times"Tamir’s work makes an important contribution by forcing us to recognize that national feeling, however defined, isn’t going away. Her argument is that the resurgence in nationalism derives in part from a reaction against an economic structure whose benefits flow mostly to those at the top, those who have rejected any responsibility for helping their fellow members of the national community. That is an argument progressives can and should incorporate into their presentation. But we can’t do that if we reject the very idea of a national community, what Tamir defines as the ‘political we.’"---Ian Reifowitz, Daily Kos"Progressives are getting nostalgic for nationalism. . . . Why Nationalism is an important contribution to this growing literature. Yael Tamir elegantly recounts nationalism’s virtues."---Peter Spiro, Lawfare"[Tamir] courageously defends moderate and universal nationalist outlooks, masterfully distinguishes between these and the murky populist wave washing over societies worldwide and endangering the Western democratic order . . . . [Why Nationalism] is outstanding in that it combines her background as a political philosopher with her many years of hands-on political experience, something that can’t be said of many scholars in the West who are now focusing on these issues."---Shlomo Avineri, Haaretz"Free-market libertarians and social democrats both have lots to learn from this measured and thoughtful book."---David Conway, Jewish Chronicle
£999.99
Princeton University Press The Currency of Politics
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Winner of the Best First Book Prize, Foundations of Political Theory section of the American Political Science Association""A fresh and splendidly clear guide to the intellectual history of monetary policy. . . . The Currency of Politics is an invaluable guide to why — and how to think about what comes next."---Felix Martin, Financial Times"Eich’s extraordinary book provides an essential guide to thinking about the politics of money." * Adam Tooze *"Eich offers a rich treatment of each historical episode. But the chapters on the two Englishmen, Locke and Keynes, stand out. . . . pathbreaking."---Jonathan Levy, Project Syndicate"Eich’s book is ultimately a call to revive democratic debate about money…this excellent book…does not tell us what to do, but he does show us something can be done."---Geoff Mann, New Statesman"A pathbreaking new intellectual history of monetary policy. In examining how key thinkers approached the economic crises of their respective times, Eich offers a map for navigating the politics of money today."---Daniel Steinmetz-Jenkins, The Nation"Eich’s work is sure to be a landmark in political science. His argument is bold and ambitious; his writing clear and engaging; and his message timely, persuasive and imperative."---Erik Jones, Survival"A deep examination of the theoretical and political foundations of money that rescues the money discussion from economists."---Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Open Magazine"An intellectual history of money that theoretically grounds the works of others working on democratizing money. The Currency of Politics is a great addition to the philosophy of money."---Valerie Schreur, Oeconomia"A very good book. . . . Eich takes us on a fascinating journey."---Paul Sagar, Perspectives on Politics"Exquisitely written."---Jorge González-Gallarza, The Critic"Eich’s contribution demarcates a new space for political thought on money, and brings together key theorists on the structuration of money both to show that political thought often has a direct effect on the type of monetary system that is maintained, and to show that democratic agency vis-a-vis money is often wilfully ignored."---Dominic Burbidge, Politics and Poetics"[The Currency of Politics] fits well into the growing critical debate on neoliberal policies that have dominated the economic discussion in the latest decades. . . . [and] helps us to understand that monetary policy must be the prerogative of a healthy and fruitful public and thus political debate."---Giampaolo Conte, The Journal of European Economic History
£34.20
Princeton University Press The Opinion of Mankind
Book SynopsisTrade Review"[An] excellent book." * Survival: Global Politics and Strategy *"True to his promise in the introduction, Sagar’s careful historical analysis recovers arguments that have not lost their interest and urgency. The book is important reading for anyone interested in the political theory of the period or the historical background of current trends towards 'realism' in political theory."---Clifton Mark, Political Theory"[A] scholarly and provocative study." * Journal of Markets & Morality *"The Opinion of Mankind is a major addition to Hanoverian historiography, of great interest not only to scholars in the field but also to graduate students wishing to gain a deeper understanding of the Scottish contribution to enlightenment political literature."---Karl W. Schweizer, European Legacy
£999.99
Princeton University Press The Infidel and the Professor
Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of The Australian Review’s 2017 Books of the Year""One of The Guardian’s Best Books of 2017""Selected for Bloomberg View’s “Must-Reads of 2017: From Space to Chinese Noir”""One of Project Syndicate’s Best Reads in 2017 (chosen by Kaushik Basu)""Shortlisted for the 2018 Ralph Waldo Emerson Award, Phi Beta Kappa Society"
£15.29
Princeton University Press You Say You Want a Revolution Radical Idealism
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Historically dense, intelligently organized, and deeply analytical, You Say You Want a Revolution? offers a great deal to a wide array of audiences. . . . This book’s cheeky title is at once a warning and a lament: those who foment discord as a vehicle for change very often find themselves in a situation more dire than the status quo ante, and the idealism inherent in such movements is exposed as a mirage." * Choice *"This is an essential book."---Steven Simon, Survival: Global Politics and Strategy"For those seeking a quick, sharply written survey of how revolutions have so often brought violence, corruption, and authoritarian rule, Chirot has provided a clear and valuable book."---Jack Goldstone, Social Forces
£29.75
Princeton University Press Lets Be Reasonable
Book SynopsisTrade Review"One of The Wall Street Journal's Best of the February Bookshelf""An engaging apologia for liberal education. . . . [Marks] blends humor with argument as he makes his case for a renewed vision of higher learning."---John J. Miller, Wall Street Journal"Marks’s vision of a newly energized liberal education is appealing, and Let’s Be Reasonable is an important and timely book. Blending anecdote and theory in a superb accessible style, Marks comes across as the professor we all wish we had: the one who gets students excited about Plato or Rousseau, who challenges them to think more deeply and often gets them to meet that challenge."---Andrew Pessin, Commentary"Instead of attempting to rule our opponents out of line, we might try reasoning with them. Thankfully [Let’s Be Reasonable] explains and models how to do it"---Damon Linker, The Week"A thoughtful . . . contribution to debates about the value of higher education." * Kirkus Reviews *"Jonathan Marks’s Let’s Be Reasonable: A Conservative Case for Liberal Education shows what higher education can be at its best. . . . Marks shows why academic freedom is worth fighting for – he documents what a liberal education can do."---Kenneth S. Stern, The Times of Israel"An important and timely book that should interest anyone, left, right, or center, concerned about higher education in general and the campus anti-Israel movement in particular. Let’s Be Reasonable is indeed a calming voice of reason amidst the frenetic shouting occurring both on and about campuses. Blending anecdote and theory in a superb and accessible style . . . Marks comes across as the professor we all wish we had."---Andrew Pessin, Times of Israel"Let’s Be Reasonable: A Conservative Case for Liberal Education is, indeed, a reasonable book. . . . Everyone needs to be exposed to his ideas on higher education’s ultimate purpose."---Jay Schalin, The James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal"Marks’s dual status as both a man of the right and a longtime academic positions him well to argue that universities must commit themselves more fully to the task of shaping reasonable people and that, despite their present flaws, all is not lost. Marks can speak both to university insiders and to their outside (often right-leaning) critics."---Thomas Koenig, The Bulwark"In straddling both sides of the debate, Marks has his work cut out for him. It’s a tribute to his wit, good sense, and, indeed, reasonableness that he largely succeeds. . . . Marks’ hopeful argument is a timely rebuttal to the kind of scorched-earth conservatism now ascendant on the intellectual right."---Richard Aldous, American Purpose"Let’s Be Reasonable offers an incisive analysis of the terrain of the contemporary American university, one that anyone interested in understanding higher education should read."---Jenna Silber Storey, Society"Marked by good humor, engaging anecdotes, and reassuring evidence that all is not lost in higher education."---Matthew Stewart, University Bookman"Recommended." * Choice *
£23.75
Princeton University Press The Roman Republic of Letters
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Winner of the Charles J. Goodwin Award of Merit, Society for Classical Studies""Volk’s argument – that the story of the Roman republic of letters is messier and more variable than it has generally been presented – is a compelling one."---Nora Goldschmidt, London Review of Books"Fascinating. . . . An engrossing guide to an epoch-making decade of western history. The Roman Republic of Letters is an important intervention, and it deserves to be debated widely."---Michael Fontaine, New Criterion"An excellent history of late Republican intellectual life that surveys a wide range of Latin prose literature. . . . Volk deeply scrutinizes her subjects in a way that is sensitive to prior studies yet free from their strictures. Her own scholarship tells lively stories, which are not digressive but structured around clear arguments. The result is a book that may be enjoyed by specialists and general readers alike.—Peter Osorio, Bryn Mawr Classical Review""Volk’s lucid prose handles much-debated issues with admirable clarity and balance. . . . [Her] unapologetic passion for Latin language and literature is refreshing, and so is her ability to portray the protagonists of the intellectual revival of the end of the republic as human beings embedded and invested in a specific cultural and historical milieu.—Luca Grillo, Classical Association of Canada"
£28.80
Princeton University Press Reputation
Book SynopsisTrade Review"This is a truly original, highly insightful, and highly readable book on a vital yet largely unexplored question: who do we trust, why should we trust, and how should we trust. Let's stop ignoring the expert problem. This is not a book, but the birth of a branch of applied knowledge."—Nassim Nicholas Taleb"[Reputation] mixes crunchy intellectual provocations with literary allusions, catty takes on academic life and some juicy riffs."—Ian Leslie, New Statesman"Having a good reputation is crucial for individuals, groups, and even objects. Through wide-ranging and well-crafted examples—from wine tasting to academic prestige—Gloria Origgi offers a grand tour of how the social sciences illuminate the process of reputation formation. Reputations might be imperfect, but they are unavoidable, and Origgi's book can help us make them more reliable."—Hugo Mercier, coauthor of The Enigma of Reason
£17.09
Princeton University Press On Being Me
Book SynopsisTrade Review"A pithy guide to eternal questions, by a specialist in ethics and moral psychology."---Sarah Lyall, New York Times Book Review"The text is accompanied by . . . clever and charming illustrations. . . . And throughout, Velleman offers a resolutely first-person meditation that, in the spirit of Descartes, eschews technical jargon and scholarly references."---Emrys Westacott, Philosophers' Magazine"Each reader will find a different mapping onto their own experience, but it is a stimulating journey." * Paradigm Explorer *"By reading [On Being Me] we should let its very personal prose nourish our understanding of the world and of ourselves. . . . On Being Me introduces many topics of academic philosophy – the self, the nature of time, free-will and responsibility – without getting lost in professional discussion and without losing sight of the importance of those themes in our daily life."---Daniel Peixoto Murata, The Journal of Value Inquiry
£10.44
Princeton University Press Grief
Book SynopsisTrade Review"“[A] clear-eyed, meticulously argued study. . . . By bringing grief to philosophy Mr. Cholbi brings philosophy closer to the other humanities; he’s as incisive a critic as he is a philosopher."---Hamilton Cain, Wall Street Journal"An informative, sweeping, and provocative examination of grief as a complex phenomenon when undertaken in response to the death of others."---Glenn C. Altschuler, Psychology Today"Fascinating, insightful, and accessible. . . . This well-written, engaging, and thought-provoking book is a brilliant example of applied philosophy. It is relevant to important debates within medicine (for example, recent controversy about definitions of a prolonged grief disorder). It will be interesting and helpful for clinicians caring for those who are bereaved, for philosophers of emotions, and of course, for all of us who, sooner or later, have to navigate the long, dark, and winding valley of loss."---Dominic Wilkinson, Journal of Applied Philosophy"One of the strengths of Cholbi’s book is in the range of authors from whom he takes accounts of grief: from the personal disclosures of C.S. Lewis to Joan Didion to the fiction of Tolstoy, Camus, and Shakespeare, just to name a few. . . . Excellent. . . . Grief certainly fulfills its aim of encouraging other philosophers to consider the existential phenomenon of grief. Cholbi has prompted such a conversation here in a significant, thoroughgoing, and engaging way."---Brad Deford, Philosophy in Review"[A] clearly written guide, which addresses many of the most important philosophical issues surrounding grief."---Becky Millar, Philosophical Quarterly"There is much to like about Cholbi's book. It is short, densely argued, and shows great familiarity with the relevant philosophical, literary, and psychological literatures."---John Danaher, Philosopher’s Magazine"The ideas [Cholbi] contributes to the experiences of grief were surprisingly comforting. . . . Michael Cholbi’s newest book is definitely one to consider for your next read. I think we could all benefit from understanding the experience of grief a little more."---Joi Foote, Redbrick"[A] wise book."---Dave Luhrssen, Shepherd Express"Cholbi’s book is a valuable addition to the contemporary analytic literature on the emotions and on grief"---Ashley Atkins, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice
£18.00
Princeton University Press Basic Rights
Book Synopsis
£22.50
Princeton University Press Victorian Pain
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Victorian Pain is a clear-eyed, beautifully written investigation of the role and uses of pain in the work of John Stuart Mill, Harriet Martineau, Charlotte Brontë, Charles Darwin and Thomas Hardy. . . . No one who is fortunate enough to read this book will look at the works it discusses in the same way again." * Times Literary Supplement *"Ablow explores the idea of pain in Victorian thought and literature, navigating between understanding pain as private, incommunicable, and pre-social (theorized most prominently in Elaine Scarry's The Body in Pain, CH, Jan'86) and theories of pain as mediated by language and produced through social life." * Choice *
£25.20
Princeton University Press Perpetual Euphoria On the Duty to Be Happy
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Finalist for the 25th Annual Translation Prize (Nonfiction), French-American Foundation & Florence Gould Foundation""[A] brilliant book. . . . Perpetual Euphoria is more than a book. It is a manifesto. It is a work of genius. It is my bible."---Roger Lewis, Daily Mail"Pascal Bruckner . . . in this witty, iconoclastic and thoroughly enjoyable polemic he shows how anxious and miserable life becomes when it is ruled by an obsessive preoccupation with feeling happy. Bruckner's range of reference is admirably wide. . . . [Perpetual Euphoria] is studded with arresting thoughts and questions."---John Gray, Literary Review"This book is stimulating, sometimes funny, and an antidote to the worship of all that is considered 'cool.'"---Julia Pascal, Independent"The happiness-promotion and happiness-backlash schools are locked today in a weird, symbiotic struggle. Weighing in on the side of the anti-happiness underdog is this sublime rhetorical performance by the novelist and philosophe Bruckner, denying serially that the individual has a duty to pursue happiness; that happiness could be a social goal; that happiness is the opposite of boredom, or the absence of suffering, or the fulfillment of plans."---Steven Poole, Guardian"[Perpetual Euphoria] is a hugely entertaining argument that traces the pursuit of happiness through the French and American revolutions and concludes that we should all relax because it is only through peace of mind that true happiness is found."---Bruce Elder, Sydney Morning Herald"As an essayist in the tradition of Kundera and Montaigne, Bruckner has a bracing knack of distilling the attitudes of the contemporary moment and helping us appraise them anew." * The Age *"Perpetual Euphoria is a beautiful essay. Lively, corrosive, brilliant.... Woven from pure emotion." * Le Journal du Dimanche *"A writer who has inherited the mantle of the French moralists' grand tradition." * Le Monde *"Pascal Bruckner's essay is a subtle attack, both scholarly and ironic, against the new obligation of being happy." * La Croix *"This exciting book explores the vicious paradox that the Enlightenment has left: one is obligated to find happiness and punish oneself if one fails to do so. . . . This book is fun to read." * Choice *"Bruckner gives us a nuanced and mature reflection on the nature of happiness in light of past reflections and cultural criticism of the West. . . . [He] is well worth reading, especially since he cannot and has not escaped framing his entire book in the Christian categories of Augustine, Thomas, and Pascal."---Gregory Edward Reynolds, Ordained Servant Online"This lively and acerbic exploration of happiness attacks the assumption that we somehow have a duty to be happy, that to fail to achieve happiness is in effect to fail as a human being, and offers the intriguing alternative view that an interesting but difficult life has more value than a comfortable but trivial one." * Good Book Guide *
£20.90
Princeton University Press The Great Guide
Book SynopsisTrade Review"A bright, engaging, reliable introduction to Hume’s life and work."---Kieran Setiya, Los Angeles Review of Books"Baggini’s intertwining of philosophy with biography is masterly."---Jane O’Grady, Literary Review"Baggini knows his subject thoroughly, explains his work in clear prose and adds biographical detail which is as illuminating as it is interesting."---Alan Dent, The Penniless Press"I’ve thoroughly enjoyed Julian Baggini’s The Great Guide: What David Hume Can Teach Us about Being Human and Living Well."---Diane Coyle, The Enlightened Economist"Entertaining and informative. . . .an imaginative glimpse of Hume living his life and doing his work."---Janna Thompson, Inside Story"As we travel around with Hume, Baggini provides his readers with a steady commentary and description of his subject’s various friendships and controversies, along with brief sketches of Hume’s core ideas and contributions. All this is lively and engaging."---Paul Russell, Times Literary Supplement"In this book the author skilfully weaves together biography with intellectual history and philosophy to provide a highly readable account of Hume’s guide to life"---David Lorimer, Paradigm Explorer"The Great Guide is an excellent introduction to Hume. The biographical travelogue lends reality to Hume as a person. The discussions of Hume’s major views are clear and careful. Hopefully the book will increase interest in Hume both inside and outside the academy."---Daniel E. Flage, European Legacy"Baggini traces Hume’s movements while exploring the evolution of his ideas. Hume had a profound impact on the history of philosophy. . . .But Hume’s more technical ideas about cause and effect isn’t the big takeaway from Baggini’s book, at least not for people who believe philosophy really is about virtue. Hume’s often contrarian ideas, his commitment to question everything, serves as an inspiration for living well. . . .What more could you want from a philosopher?"---Steven Gambardella, Sophist
£18.00
Princeton University Press Leviathan on a Leash
Book SynopsisNew perspectives on the role of collective responsibility in modern politicsTrade Review"Leviathan on a Leash [is] an extremely refreshing and rewarding read; indeed, I struggle to think of any other work that so successfully draws on and revises Hobbes’s ideas to make such an important intervention into contemporary debates."---Robin Douglass, Hobbes Studies
£31.50
Princeton University Press Gentlemen Revolutionaries
Book Synopsis
£25.20
Princeton University Press Unconditional Equals
Book SynopsisTrade Review"Unsettlingly brilliant. . . . Her work is proof positive of the richness of political theory in its authentically Aristotelian sense: as the abstract contemplation of politics for the sake of doing it better—if not always well."---Teresa M. Bejan, Boston Review"Conceptually rich and compulsively readable.—David Livingstone Smith, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews"
£29.75
