As well as being considered the greatest English political philosopher, Hobbes has traditionally been thought of as a purely secular thinker, highly critical of all religion. In this provocative new study, Professor Martinich argues that conventional wisdom has been misled. In fact, he shows that religious concerns pervade Leviathan and that Hobbes was really intent on providing a rational defense of the Calvinistic Church of England that flourished under the reign of James I. Professor Martinich presents a close reading of (...) Leviathan in which he shows that, for Hobbes, Christian doctrine is not politically destabilizing and is consistent with modern science. (shrink)

In this work, legal theorist and political philosopher Carl Schmitt argues that liberalism's basis in individual rights cannot provide a reasonable justification for sacrificing oneself for the state.

The Allegiance of Thomas Hobbes offers a new interpretation of Thomas Hobbes's response to the English Revolution. By focusing on his religious thought, it debunks the standard view of him as a royalist, and recovers his sympathies with the religious projects of the 1640s and 1650s. This reinterpretation culminates with an exploration of Hobbes's surprising sympathies with Oliver Cromwell and his supporters. By placing Thomas Hobbes within fresh contexts, Professor Collins offers a new angle of vision on the religious significance (...) of the English Revolution itself. (shrink)

Chapter Introduction Hobbes's political doctrine presents the unusual feature that it has given rise to an "official" interpretation, in terms of which, ...

The Logic of Leviathan The Moral and Political Theory of Thomas Hobbes.

This major new work from Quentin Skinner presents a fundamental reappraisal of the political theory of Hobbes. Using, for the first time, the full range of manuscript as well as printed sources, it documents an entirely new view of Hobbes 's intellectual development, and re-examines the shift from a humanist to a scientific culture in European moral and political thought. By examining Hobbes 's philosophy against the background of his humanist education, Professor Skinner rescues this most difficult and challenging of (...) political philosophers from the intellectual isolation in which he is so often discussed. This book presents a splendid exemplification of the 'Cambridge' contextual approach to the study of intellectual history with which Professor Skinner himself is especially associated. It will be of interest and importance to a wide range of scholars in history, philosophy, politics, and literary theory. (shrink)

He has an astonishing range, and in this book he expands it still further. More than a mere introduction, Made with Words offers a coherent and well-argued picture of most of the main components of Hobbes's wide-ranging philosophy.

This major study of Hobbes' political philosophy draws on recent developments in game and decision theory to explore whether the thrust of the argument in Leviathan, that it is in the interests of the people to create a ruler with absolute power, can be shown to be cogent. Professor Hampton has written a book of vital importance to political philosophers, political and social scientists, and intellectual historians.

Umstritten ist, was der Gesellschaftsvertrag, Zentrum der politischen Theorie Hobbes’, eigentlich begründen soll: friedenserzwingende Macht oder menschengemachtes Kunstwerk? Zudem ist fraglich, ob das Modell so rational ist, wie Hobbes behauptet. Der Beitrag geht auf den weniger beachteten Begriff der Person im „Leviathan“ ein. Er folgt zunächst den römisch-lateinischen Quellen dieser Wortbedeutung als „Maske“ und arbeitet das Schillernd-Doppeldeutige des Begriffs in dieser Tradition heraus. Daraufhin wird Hobbes’ Gesellschaftsvertrag als der Akt rekonstruiert, durch den der Staat als die „künstliche Person“ entsteht, die (...) zugleich den Willen aller repräsentiert. Dies Modell verbindet, so die These, die der biblischen Tradition entstammende Idee der Staatsgründung mit der römischen Idee der Repräsentation. Das Doppeldeutige der Person zeigt auch Hobbes’ Staatsbegriff: der Souverän ist als „Träger der Persona“ nicht nur natürlicher Mensch und künstliche Person, sondern untrennbar beides. Dieser Untrennbarkeit wegen kann Hobbes weder den Gedanken einer möglichen Tyrannis noch den einer Teilung der Gewalten zulassen. Abschließend wird auf die religiöse Dimension dieser Vertragskonstruktion verwiesen, die sowohl den „Sprung“ vom Natur- in den Staatszustand als auch das unbedingt Rechtmäßige staatlicher Herrschaft erklärbar macht. (shrink)