Political philosophy can be defined as philosophical reflection on how best to arrange our collective life - our political institutions and our social practices, such as our economic system and our pattern of family life. (Sometimes a distinction is made between political and social philosophy, but I shall use ‘political philosophy’ in a broad sense to include both.) Political philosophers seek to establish basic principles that will, for instance, justify a particular form of state, show that individuals have certain inalienable rights, or tell us how a society’s material resources should be shared among its members. This usually involves analysing and interpreting ideas like freedom, justice, authority and democracy and then applying them in a critical way to the social and political institutions that currently exist. Some political philosophers have tried primarily to justify the prevailing arrangements of their society; others have painted pictures of an ideal state or an ideal social world that is very different from anything we have so far experienced...
*From Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Overview of Political Philosophy from Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy: Political Philosophy
Political Philosophy Resources
Politics: Key Concepts in Philosophy by Call Number: Online Resource (CARLI eBooks from EBook Central)ISBN: 1441136088Publication Date: 2009The extent and nature of rights; the sources of state power; the promises and pitfalls of democracy; how to achieve a just distribution of social goods; the claims of culture and gender on our identity: these are just some of the issues to have been addressed by political philosophers throughout history. Politics: Key Concepts in Philosophy offers a thorough and stimulating account of political philosophy. The text is structured thematically in order to convey the vibrancy of debates within the discipline. Through these debates the text addresses the ideas of major thinkers - including Plato, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Marx, Foucault, Rawls, Kymlicka, Okin and Butler - and it begins and ends with discussions about the nature of political philosophy itself. This is an invaluable aid to study, one that goes beyond simple definitions and summaries; readers new to this discipline will encounter a lively text full of clear signposts for the journey into political philosophy.
The Blackwell Guide to Social and Political Philosophy by Call Number: Online Resource (Wiley Online Library Online Books)ISBN: 9780631221272Publication Date: 2002The Blackwell Guide to Social and Political Philosophy brings together a collection of newly commissioned essays which examine fundamental issues in social and political theory. Written by leading social and political philosophers, each essay provides a map to the history of the issue at hand and a judicious assessment of the main arguments that have been brought to bear upon that issue.
Political Philosophy A-Z by Call Number: Online Resource (CREDOreference Academic Core)ISBN: 0748622705Publication Date: 2007A comprehensive, up to date and concise guide to one of the most important branches of philosophy. Both topical and historical, Political Philosophy A-Z has entries on Hobbes, Marx, and Rorty, as well as entries which explain what 'contract theory' is, and gives an account of 'multi-culturalism.' This book guides the reader through the intricacies of political theory, enabling them to trace their way through a debate, fixing historical and theoretical points of reference along the way. It is well suited for students studying political philosophy at university.Political Philosophy A-Z links up positions, thinkers and theories without unnecessary technicality. It is a valuable guide to political theorising.
Contemporary Debates in Political Philosophy by Call Number: Online Resource (Wiley Online Library Online Books)ISBN: 9781444310399Publication Date: 2009This collection of 24 essays, written by eminent philosophers and political theorists, brings together fresh debates on some of the most fundamental questions in contemporary political philosophy, including human rights, equality, constitutionalism, the value of democracy, identity and political neutrality. Presents fresh debates on six of the fundamental questions in contemporary political philosophy Each question is treated by a pair of opposing essays written by eminent scholars Lively debate format sharply defines the issues, invites the reader to participate in the exchange of arguments and paves the way for further discussion Will serve as an accessible introduction to the major topics in political philosophy, whilst also capturing the imagination of professional philosophers. Offers the unique opportunity to observe leading philosophers engaging in head-to-head debate.
Farewell to Freedom by Call Number: Online Resource (JSTOR, Project Muse, or PDF)ISBN: 1911534602Publication Date: 2018Understandings of freedom are often discussed in moral, theological, legal and political terms, but they are not often set in a historical perspective, and they are even more rarely considered within their specific language context. From Homeric poems to contemporary works, the author traces the words that express the various notions of freedom in Classical Greek, Latin, and medieval and modern European idioms. Examining writers as varied as Plato, Aristotle, Luther, La Boétie, Hobbes, Rousseau, Kant, Stirner, Nietzsche, and Foucault among others, this theoretical mapping shows old and new boundaries of the horizon of freedom. The book suggests the possibility of transcending these boundaries on the basis of a different theorization of human interactions, which constructs individual and collective subjects as processes rather than entities. This construction shifts and disseminates the very locus of freedom, whose vocabulary would be better recast as a relational middle path between autonomous and heteronomous alternatives.
