Terence Ball
- Published in print:
- 1994
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198279952
- eISBN:
- 9780191598753
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198279957.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
The book—the second volume of my trilogy Political Theory and the Human Sciences—is divided into two sections. The first and shorter section (Chs. 1 and 2) deals with methodological and interpretive ...
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The book—the second volume of my trilogy Political Theory and the Human Sciences—is divided into two sections. The first and shorter section (Chs. 1 and 2) deals with methodological and interpretive questions and advocates a methodologically `pluralist’ and `problem‐driven’ approach to the interpretation and reappraisal of works of political theory. The second and much longer section (Chs. 3–12), applying the method outlined and defended in the first, consists of a series of reinterpretations and reappraisals of thinkers, texts, themes, and topics in political theory.Less
The book—the second volume of my trilogy Political Theory and the Human Sciences—is divided into two sections. The first and shorter section (Chs. 1 and 2) deals with methodological and interpretive questions and advocates a methodologically `pluralist’ and `problem‐driven’ approach to the interpretation and reappraisal of works of political theory. The second and much longer section (Chs. 3–12), applying the method outlined and defended in the first, consists of a series of reinterpretations and reappraisals of thinkers, texts, themes, and topics in political theory.
Arihiro Fukuda
- Published in print:
- 1997
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198206835
- eISBN:
- 9780191677328
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198206835.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, British and Irish Early Modern History, Political History
The English civil wars of the mid-seventeenth century produced two political thinkers of genius: Thomas Hobbes and James Harrington. They are known today as spokesmen of opposite positions, Hobbes of ...
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The English civil wars of the mid-seventeenth century produced two political thinkers of genius: Thomas Hobbes and James Harrington. They are known today as spokesmen of opposite positions, Hobbes of absolutism, Harrington of republicanism. Yet behind their disagreements, this book argues, there lay a common perspective. For both writers, the primary aim was the restoration of peace and order to a divided land. Both men saw the conventional thinking of the time as unequal to that task. Their greatest works — Hobbes's Leviathan of 1651, Harrington's Oceana of 1656 — proposed the reconstruction of the English polity on novel bases. It was not over the principle of sovereignty that the two men differed. The author of this book shows Harrington to have been, no less than Hobbes, a theorist of absolute sovereignty. But where Hobbes repudiated the mixed governments of classical antiquity, Harrington's study of them convinced him that mixed government, far from being the enemy of absolute sovereignty, was its essential foundation.Less
The English civil wars of the mid-seventeenth century produced two political thinkers of genius: Thomas Hobbes and James Harrington. They are known today as spokesmen of opposite positions, Hobbes of absolutism, Harrington of republicanism. Yet behind their disagreements, this book argues, there lay a common perspective. For both writers, the primary aim was the restoration of peace and order to a divided land. Both men saw the conventional thinking of the time as unequal to that task. Their greatest works — Hobbes's Leviathan of 1651, Harrington's Oceana of 1656 — proposed the reconstruction of the English polity on novel bases. It was not over the principle of sovereignty that the two men differed. The author of this book shows Harrington to have been, no less than Hobbes, a theorist of absolute sovereignty. But where Hobbes repudiated the mixed governments of classical antiquity, Harrington's study of them convinced him that mixed government, far from being the enemy of absolute sovereignty, was its essential foundation.
José Luis Bermúdez
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195159691
- eISBN:
- 9780199849598
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195159691.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Language
This book provides a new theory of the nature of nonlinguistic thought. Many scientific disciplines treat nonlinguistic creatures as thinkers, explaining their behavior in terms of their thoughts ...
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This book provides a new theory of the nature of nonlinguistic thought. Many scientific disciplines treat nonlinguistic creatures as thinkers, explaining their behavior in terms of their thoughts about themselves and about the environment. But this theorizing has proceeded without any clear account of the types of thinking available to nonlinguistic creatures. One consequence of this is that ascriptions of thoughts to nonlinguistic creatures have frequently been held to be metaphorical and not to be taken at face value. The book offers a conceptual framework for treating human infants and nonhuman animals as genuine thinkers. Whereas existing discussions of thought at the nonlinguistic level have concentrated on how such thoughts might be physically realized, it approaches the problem by considering what is required in explaining behavior in psychological terms. In developing a positive account of nonlinguistic thought the book shows how the experimental tools used by developmental psychologists and students of animal behavior can be used to give a precise account of the way in which a human infant or nonhuman animal is representing the world. Much of the book is devoted to exploring the differences between thinking without words and language-based thinking. The book argues that there are clear limits to the expressive power of nonlinguistic thought. Nonetheless, it identifies primitive analogues at the nonlinguistic level that can be used to explain sophisticated nonlinguistic behaviors.Less
This book provides a new theory of the nature of nonlinguistic thought. Many scientific disciplines treat nonlinguistic creatures as thinkers, explaining their behavior in terms of their thoughts about themselves and about the environment. But this theorizing has proceeded without any clear account of the types of thinking available to nonlinguistic creatures. One consequence of this is that ascriptions of thoughts to nonlinguistic creatures have frequently been held to be metaphorical and not to be taken at face value. The book offers a conceptual framework for treating human infants and nonhuman animals as genuine thinkers. Whereas existing discussions of thought at the nonlinguistic level have concentrated on how such thoughts might be physically realized, it approaches the problem by considering what is required in explaining behavior in psychological terms. In developing a positive account of nonlinguistic thought the book shows how the experimental tools used by developmental psychologists and students of animal behavior can be used to give a precise account of the way in which a human infant or nonhuman animal is representing the world. Much of the book is devoted to exploring the differences between thinking without words and language-based thinking. The book argues that there are clear limits to the expressive power of nonlinguistic thought. Nonetheless, it identifies primitive analogues at the nonlinguistic level that can be used to explain sophisticated nonlinguistic behaviors.
Peter Hinchliff
- Published in print:
- 1987
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198266884
- eISBN:
- 9780191683091
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198266884.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Church History
The conventional picture of Benjamin Jowett (1817–93) is of the outstanding educator, the famous master of Balliol College, Oxford, whose pupils were extremely influential in the public life of ...
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The conventional picture of Benjamin Jowett (1817–93) is of the outstanding educator, the famous master of Balliol College, Oxford, whose pupils were extremely influential in the public life of Britain in the second half of the 19th century. However, he is also recognized as a theologian since he contributed an essay titled ‘On the Interpretation of Scripture’ to Essays and Reviews, a collection published in 1860. The book's liberalism aroused great controversy, and it was eventually synodically condemned in 1864. It has been thought that having got into trouble over his essay, Jowett abandoned theology and became a purely secular figure. This book attempts to identify the ideas which caused Jowett to develop his theology, the thinkers who influenced him, and how his own religious ideas evolved. It argues that, after the Essays and Reviews controversy, he deliberately chose to disseminate those ideas through the college of which he became master. It also shows how he influenced other religious thinkers and theologians of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, arguing that he was more important in the history of English theology than is usually recognized.Less
The conventional picture of Benjamin Jowett (1817–93) is of the outstanding educator, the famous master of Balliol College, Oxford, whose pupils were extremely influential in the public life of Britain in the second half of the 19th century. However, he is also recognized as a theologian since he contributed an essay titled ‘On the Interpretation of Scripture’ to Essays and Reviews, a collection published in 1860. The book's liberalism aroused great controversy, and it was eventually synodically condemned in 1864. It has been thought that having got into trouble over his essay, Jowett abandoned theology and became a purely secular figure. This book attempts to identify the ideas which caused Jowett to develop his theology, the thinkers who influenced him, and how his own religious ideas evolved. It argues that, after the Essays and Reviews controversy, he deliberately chose to disseminate those ideas through the college of which he became master. It also shows how he influenced other religious thinkers and theologians of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, arguing that he was more important in the history of English theology than is usually recognized.
Bruce K. Rutherford
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691158044
- eISBN:
- 9781400846146
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691158044.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Which way will Egypt go now that Husni Mubarak's authoritarian regime has been swept from power? Will it become an Islamic theocracy similar to Iran? Will it embrace Western-style liberalism and ...
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Which way will Egypt go now that Husni Mubarak's authoritarian regime has been swept from power? Will it become an Islamic theocracy similar to Iran? Will it embrace Western-style liberalism and democracy? This book reveals that Egypt's secularists and Islamists may yet navigate a middle path that results in a uniquely Islamic form of liberalism and, perhaps, democracy. The book draws on in-depth interviews with Egyptian judges, lawyers, Islamic activists, politicians, and businesspeople. It utilizes major court rulings, political documents of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the writings of Egypt's leading contemporary Islamic thinkers. The book demonstrates that, in post-Mubarak Egypt, progress toward liberalism and democracy is likely to be slow. Essential reading on a subject of global importance, this edition includes a new introduction that takes stock of the Arab Spring and the Muslim Brotherhood's victories in the 2011–2012 elections.Less
Which way will Egypt go now that Husni Mubarak's authoritarian regime has been swept from power? Will it become an Islamic theocracy similar to Iran? Will it embrace Western-style liberalism and democracy? This book reveals that Egypt's secularists and Islamists may yet navigate a middle path that results in a uniquely Islamic form of liberalism and, perhaps, democracy. The book draws on in-depth interviews with Egyptian judges, lawyers, Islamic activists, politicians, and businesspeople. It utilizes major court rulings, political documents of the Muslim Brotherhood, and the writings of Egypt's leading contemporary Islamic thinkers. The book demonstrates that, in post-Mubarak Egypt, progress toward liberalism and democracy is likely to be slow. Essential reading on a subject of global importance, this edition includes a new introduction that takes stock of the Arab Spring and the Muslim Brotherhood's victories in the 2011–2012 elections.
Henry Chadwick
- Published in print:
- 1984
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198266730
- eISBN:
- 9780191683077
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198266730.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Early Christian Studies
The historian of Western culture cannot travel far without discovering that the roots of many 20th-century questions lie in the ancient dialogue between the early Christians and culture of the old ...
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The historian of Western culture cannot travel far without discovering that the roots of many 20th-century questions lie in the ancient dialogue between the early Christians and culture of the old Classical world. This book takes three Christian thinkers: Justin, Clement of Alexandria, and Origen, and shows what the debate looked like from the Christian side. It draws on the pagan critics of the Church to illustrate the case the Christians had to answer. The examination of the Christian synthesis illustrates the extent to which penetrating criticism of the Classical tradition was combined with a profound acceptance of its humanism.Less
The historian of Western culture cannot travel far without discovering that the roots of many 20th-century questions lie in the ancient dialogue between the early Christians and culture of the old Classical world. This book takes three Christian thinkers: Justin, Clement of Alexandria, and Origen, and shows what the debate looked like from the Christian side. It draws on the pagan critics of the Church to illustrate the case the Christians had to answer. The examination of the Christian synthesis illustrates the extent to which penetrating criticism of the Classical tradition was combined with a profound acceptance of its humanism.
Grant Gillett
- Published in print:
- 1992
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198239932
- eISBN:
- 9780191680045
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198239932.003.0011
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Language, Philosophy of Mind
This chapter discusses and summarizes the topics and concepts that have been discussed in this book. Linguistic meaning, singular thoughts, the brain, and even the behaviour of a person are some of ...
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This chapter discusses and summarizes the topics and concepts that have been discussed in this book. Linguistic meaning, singular thoughts, the brain, and even the behaviour of a person are some of the concepts that are reviewed in this chapter. Based on the discussions found in this book, it can be said that representation is built on the presence of order, structure, and consistency in the responses of a thinker.Less
This chapter discusses and summarizes the topics and concepts that have been discussed in this book. Linguistic meaning, singular thoughts, the brain, and even the behaviour of a person are some of the concepts that are reviewed in this chapter. Based on the discussions found in this book, it can be said that representation is built on the presence of order, structure, and consistency in the responses of a thinker.
Michael Laffan
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- October 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780691145303
- eISBN:
- 9781400839995
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Princeton University Press
- DOI:
- 10.23943/princeton/9780691145303.001.0001
- Subject:
- History, Asian History
Indonesian Islam is often portrayed as being intrinsically moderate by virtue of the role that mystical Sufism played in shaping its traditions. According to Western observers—from Dutch colonial ...
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Indonesian Islam is often portrayed as being intrinsically moderate by virtue of the role that mystical Sufism played in shaping its traditions. According to Western observers—from Dutch colonial administrators and orientalist scholars to modern anthropologists such as the late Clifford Geertz—Indonesia's peaceful interpretation of Islam has been perpetually under threat from outside by more violent, intolerant Islamic traditions that were originally imposed by conquering Arab armies. This book challenges this widely accepted narrative, offering a more balanced assessment of the intellectual and cultural history of the most populous Muslim nation on Earth. The book traces how the popular image of Indonesian Islam was shaped by encounters between colonial Dutch scholars and reformist Islamic thinkers. It shows how Dutch religious preoccupations sometimes echoed Muslim concerns about the relationship between faith and the state, and how Dutch–Islamic discourse throughout the long centuries of European colonialism helped give rise to Indonesia's distinctive national and religious culture. This book presents Islamic and colonial history as an integrated whole, revealing the ways our understanding of Indonesian Islam, both past and present, came to be.Less
Indonesian Islam is often portrayed as being intrinsically moderate by virtue of the role that mystical Sufism played in shaping its traditions. According to Western observers—from Dutch colonial administrators and orientalist scholars to modern anthropologists such as the late Clifford Geertz—Indonesia's peaceful interpretation of Islam has been perpetually under threat from outside by more violent, intolerant Islamic traditions that were originally imposed by conquering Arab armies. This book challenges this widely accepted narrative, offering a more balanced assessment of the intellectual and cultural history of the most populous Muslim nation on Earth. The book traces how the popular image of Indonesian Islam was shaped by encounters between colonial Dutch scholars and reformist Islamic thinkers. It shows how Dutch religious preoccupations sometimes echoed Muslim concerns about the relationship between faith and the state, and how Dutch–Islamic discourse throughout the long centuries of European colonialism helped give rise to Indonesia's distinctive national and religious culture. This book presents Islamic and colonial history as an integrated whole, revealing the ways our understanding of Indonesian Islam, both past and present, came to be.
Charles Travis
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- January 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199291465
- eISBN:
- 9780191710667
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199291465.003.0003
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Language
This chapter focuses on Investigations, §§36-64. It treats a problem raised by Russell in c. 1918: How can a human thinker ever think a singular thought? This discussion of naming individuals (of ...
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This chapter focuses on Investigations, §§36-64. It treats a problem raised by Russell in c. 1918: How can a human thinker ever think a singular thought? This discussion of naming individuals (of singular thought) makes two main ideas emerge. The first is that there is a way of thinking of an individual (or, equally, of a way for things to be), which distinguishes between identification, so re-identification, tasks of an occasion and a general, occasion-independent, question as to when it would be such-and-such, or so-and-so, that (who) was in question. The second is that it may be an occasion-sensitive matter as to whether a certain status is enjoyed; a question not answered merely by the ‘enjoyer’ of that status being as he is.Less
This chapter focuses on Investigations, §§36-64. It treats a problem raised by Russell in c. 1918: How can a human thinker ever think a singular thought? This discussion of naming individuals (of singular thought) makes two main ideas emerge. The first is that there is a way of thinking of an individual (or, equally, of a way for things to be), which distinguishes between identification, so re-identification, tasks of an occasion and a general, occasion-independent, question as to when it would be such-and-such, or so-and-so, that (who) was in question. The second is that it may be an occasion-sensitive matter as to whether a certain status is enjoyed; a question not answered merely by the ‘enjoyer’ of that status being as he is.
Chad Hillier and Basit Koshul (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2015
- Published Online:
- September 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780748695416
- eISBN:
- 9781474416078
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748695416.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Islam
There are few moments in human history where the forces of religion, culture and politics converge to produce some of the most significant philosophical ideas in the world. India, in the early 20th ...
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There are few moments in human history where the forces of religion, culture and politics converge to produce some of the most significant philosophical ideas in the world. India, in the early 20th century, was the setting for one of these moments, which saw the rise of activist-thinkers like Nehru, Jinnah, and Gandhi. One of the most influential members of the group was the poet-philosopher Muhammad Iqbal. Commonly known as the “spiritual father of Pakistan,” the philosophical and political ideas of Iqbal not only shaped the face of Indian Muslim nationalism but also shaped the direction of modernist reformist Islam around the world. This book offers novel examinations of the philosophical ideas that laid at the heart of Iqbal's own. As such, by producing new developments in research on Iqbal's thought from a diversity of prominent and emerging voices within American and European Islamic studies, this book offers new and novel examinations of the ideas that lies at the heart of Iqbal's own thought: religion, science, metaphysics, nationalism and religious identity.Less
There are few moments in human history where the forces of religion, culture and politics converge to produce some of the most significant philosophical ideas in the world. India, in the early 20th century, was the setting for one of these moments, which saw the rise of activist-thinkers like Nehru, Jinnah, and Gandhi. One of the most influential members of the group was the poet-philosopher Muhammad Iqbal. Commonly known as the “spiritual father of Pakistan,” the philosophical and political ideas of Iqbal not only shaped the face of Indian Muslim nationalism but also shaped the direction of modernist reformist Islam around the world. This book offers novel examinations of the philosophical ideas that laid at the heart of Iqbal's own. As such, by producing new developments in research on Iqbal's thought from a diversity of prominent and emerging voices within American and European Islamic studies, this book offers new and novel examinations of the ideas that lies at the heart of Iqbal's own thought: religion, science, metaphysics, nationalism and religious identity.
Roy Sorensen
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199275731
- eISBN:
- 9780191706103
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199275731.003.0013
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Philosophy of Mind
A meta-conception is a hypothetical one. It answers a question by imagining someone (usually a more able conceiver) answering that question via an act of imagination. Thus, meta-conceptions stand to ...
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A meta-conception is a hypothetical one. It answers a question by imagining someone (usually a more able conceiver) answering that question via an act of imagination. Thus, meta-conceptions stand to thought experiments as thought experiments stand to executed experiments. If conceivability entails possibility, then meta-conceiving entails possibility. Meta-conceptions would then work as well as thought experiments. But they do not work as well, giving fresh doubt about ‘Conceivability entails possibility’. Some of what passes for conceiving is really meta-conceiving, so these concerns affect modal epistemology. This chapter considers meta-conceptions as legitimate modes of inquiry but ranks them lower than thought experiments.Less
A meta-conception is a hypothetical one. It answers a question by imagining someone (usually a more able conceiver) answering that question via an act of imagination. Thus, meta-conceptions stand to thought experiments as thought experiments stand to executed experiments. If conceivability entails possibility, then meta-conceiving entails possibility. Meta-conceptions would then work as well as thought experiments. But they do not work as well, giving fresh doubt about ‘Conceivability entails possibility’. Some of what passes for conceiving is really meta-conceiving, so these concerns affect modal epistemology. This chapter considers meta-conceptions as legitimate modes of inquiry but ranks them lower than thought experiments.
Peter France and William St Clair (eds)
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197263181
- eISBN:
- 9780191734595
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197263181.001.0001
- Subject:
- Literature, Criticism/Theory
Why biography? This collection of chapters on the problems and functions of biography, and particularly the biography of writers, thinkers, and artists, investigates a subject of enduring importance ...
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Why biography? This collection of chapters on the problems and functions of biography, and particularly the biography of writers, thinkers, and artists, investigates a subject of enduring importance for those interested in culture and society. In the last century, it has been a controversial subject, as old models of biographical writing were attacked and superseded, while critics and theorists questioned the once self-evident value of the biography of writers. Yet the genre continues to attract notable authors and is unfailingly popular with readers. The present volume, while containing chapters by practising biographers, is intended primarily as a stimulus to critical thinking. It focuses on the diverse functions assumed by life-writing in different European countries at different periods, challenging both the notion of a genre with constant characteristics and aims and the view of modern biography as the happy culmination of centuries of progress.Less
Why biography? This collection of chapters on the problems and functions of biography, and particularly the biography of writers, thinkers, and artists, investigates a subject of enduring importance for those interested in culture and society. In the last century, it has been a controversial subject, as old models of biographical writing were attacked and superseded, while critics and theorists questioned the once self-evident value of the biography of writers. Yet the genre continues to attract notable authors and is unfailingly popular with readers. The present volume, while containing chapters by practising biographers, is intended primarily as a stimulus to critical thinking. It focuses on the diverse functions assumed by life-writing in different European countries at different periods, challenging both the notion of a genre with constant characteristics and aims and the view of modern biography as the happy culmination of centuries of progress.
Duncan Kelly
- Published in print:
- 2003
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780197262870
- eISBN:
- 9780191734892
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- British Academy
- DOI:
- 10.5871/bacad/9780197262870.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
This book offers a broad-ranging re-interpretation of the understanding of politics and the state in the writings of three major German thinkers, Max Weber, Carl Schmitt, and Franz Neumann. It ...
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This book offers a broad-ranging re-interpretation of the understanding of politics and the state in the writings of three major German thinkers, Max Weber, Carl Schmitt, and Franz Neumann. It rejects the typical separation of these writers on the basis of their allegedly incompatible ideological positions, and suggests instead that once properly located in their historical context, the tendentious character of these interpretative boundaries becomes clear. The book interprets the conceptions of politics and the state in the writings of these three thinkers by means of an investigation of their adaptation and modification of particular German traditions of thinking about the state, or Staatsrechtslehre. Indeed, when the theoretical considerations of this state-legal theory are combined with their contemporary political criticism, a richer and more deeply textured account of the issues that engaged the attention of Weber, Schmitt and Neumann is possible. Thus, the broad range of subjects discussed in this book include parliamentarism and democracy in Germany, academic freedom and political economy, political representation, cultural criticism and patriotism, and the relationship between rationality, law, sovereignty and the constitution. The study attempts to restore a sense of proportion to the discussion of the three authors' writings, focusing on the extensive ideas that they shared rather than insisting on their necessary ideological separation. It is a detailed re-appraisal of a crucial moment in modern intellectual history, and highlights the profound importance of Max Weber, Carl Schmitt and Franz Neumann for the history of European ideas.Less
This book offers a broad-ranging re-interpretation of the understanding of politics and the state in the writings of three major German thinkers, Max Weber, Carl Schmitt, and Franz Neumann. It rejects the typical separation of these writers on the basis of their allegedly incompatible ideological positions, and suggests instead that once properly located in their historical context, the tendentious character of these interpretative boundaries becomes clear. The book interprets the conceptions of politics and the state in the writings of these three thinkers by means of an investigation of their adaptation and modification of particular German traditions of thinking about the state, or Staatsrechtslehre. Indeed, when the theoretical considerations of this state-legal theory are combined with their contemporary political criticism, a richer and more deeply textured account of the issues that engaged the attention of Weber, Schmitt and Neumann is possible. Thus, the broad range of subjects discussed in this book include parliamentarism and democracy in Germany, academic freedom and political economy, political representation, cultural criticism and patriotism, and the relationship between rationality, law, sovereignty and the constitution. The study attempts to restore a sense of proportion to the discussion of the three authors' writings, focusing on the extensive ideas that they shared rather than insisting on their necessary ideological separation. It is a detailed re-appraisal of a crucial moment in modern intellectual history, and highlights the profound importance of Max Weber, Carl Schmitt and Franz Neumann for the history of European ideas.
Azar Gat
- Published in print:
- 1998
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780198207153
- eISBN:
- 9780191677519
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198207153.003.0002
- Subject:
- History, Military History, History of Ideas
John Frederick Charles Fuller was known for his intellectual intensity, wide-ranging interests and literary scope. In 1930s he was involved in Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists. This ...
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John Frederick Charles Fuller was known for his intellectual intensity, wide-ranging interests and literary scope. In 1930s he was involved in Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists. This involvement was seen as an unfortunate event in his career, mainly attributed to his eccentric personality or to fascist emphasis on order and all things military. This chapter aims to discuss and advance some of the propositions about the life and standpoint of Fuller on the issue of fascism. This chapter discusses Fuller's development as intellectual before he became a military thinker. The chapter also discusses his formative years and its influence in moulding him as a participant in the proto-fascist mood. Discussion also includes his interest in and major contributions to his own military profession. Discussed as well is his vision of the mechanization of warfare which was spurred by his outlook and interests.Less
John Frederick Charles Fuller was known for his intellectual intensity, wide-ranging interests and literary scope. In 1930s he was involved in Oswald Mosley's British Union of Fascists. This involvement was seen as an unfortunate event in his career, mainly attributed to his eccentric personality or to fascist emphasis on order and all things military. This chapter aims to discuss and advance some of the propositions about the life and standpoint of Fuller on the issue of fascism. This chapter discusses Fuller's development as intellectual before he became a military thinker. The chapter also discusses his formative years and its influence in moulding him as a participant in the proto-fascist mood. Discussion also includes his interest in and major contributions to his own military profession. Discussed as well is his vision of the mechanization of warfare which was spurred by his outlook and interests.
Jan Westerhoff
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- May 2009
- ISBN:
- 9780195375213
- eISBN:
- 9780199871360
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195375213.003.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
This introductory chapter introduces Nāgārjuna as a philosophical thinker and gives a brief discussion of the difficulties faced when trying to establish his exact dates and location. This chapter ...
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This introductory chapter introduces Nāgārjuna as a philosophical thinker and gives a brief discussion of the difficulties faced when trying to establish his exact dates and location. This chapter justifies the choice of the six texts comprising the so-called ‘Yukti-corpus’ as the basis for the discussion in the book and adds some remarks on methodology. The chapter also provides a brief outline of the philosophical study of Nāgārjuna in the West. This is followed by a synopsis of the arguments presented in the following chapters.Less
This introductory chapter introduces Nāgārjuna as a philosophical thinker and gives a brief discussion of the difficulties faced when trying to establish his exact dates and location. This chapter justifies the choice of the six texts comprising the so-called ‘Yukti-corpus’ as the basis for the discussion in the book and adds some remarks on methodology. The chapter also provides a brief outline of the philosophical study of Nāgārjuna in the West. This is followed by a synopsis of the arguments presented in the following chapters.
Steve Buckler
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- March 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780748639021
- eISBN:
- 9780748652853
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Edinburgh University Press
- DOI:
- 10.3366/edinburgh/9780748639021.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
Hannah Arendt's work has been noted for its unorthodox and eclectic style. This book aims to show that her unusual approach in fact reflects a consistent and distinctive conception of, and way of ...
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Hannah Arendt's work has been noted for its unorthodox and eclectic style. This book aims to show that her unusual approach in fact reflects a consistent and distinctive conception of, and way of doing, political theory. This is established through close readings of her most influential works. In light of these readings, the book argues that Arendt's work is of continuing relevance in offering an important and challenging alternative to the more orthodox methods that are characteristic of modern political theory in both its analytical and post-analytical forms. The book discusses Arendt's key works — The Origins of Totalitarianism, The Human Condition and On Revolution — alongside her less-well-known and posthumously published writing; shows how Arendt framed problems with respect to specific concerns in the modern polity and democratic culture; and considers Arendt's views on totalitarianism, political theory, the concept of action, revolutions, political ethics and the role of the thinker.Less
Hannah Arendt's work has been noted for its unorthodox and eclectic style. This book aims to show that her unusual approach in fact reflects a consistent and distinctive conception of, and way of doing, political theory. This is established through close readings of her most influential works. In light of these readings, the book argues that Arendt's work is of continuing relevance in offering an important and challenging alternative to the more orthodox methods that are characteristic of modern political theory in both its analytical and post-analytical forms. The book discusses Arendt's key works — The Origins of Totalitarianism, The Human Condition and On Revolution — alongside her less-well-known and posthumously published writing; shows how Arendt framed problems with respect to specific concerns in the modern polity and democratic culture; and considers Arendt's views on totalitarianism, political theory, the concept of action, revolutions, political ethics and the role of the thinker.
Michael L. Morgan
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195148626
- eISBN:
- 9780199870011
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195148622.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
The impact of the Six Day Israeli–Arab War of May–June 1967 on American Jewish life and especially in the way American Jews perceived Israel and the Holocaust is considered. The events of that summer ...
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The impact of the Six Day Israeli–Arab War of May–June 1967 on American Jewish life and especially in the way American Jews perceived Israel and the Holocaust is considered. The events of that summer and the changing character of American life shaped the constituencies for the post‐Holocaust Jewish thinkers; they also helped to shape them and their work. The chapter discusses the reactions of the young Jewish radicals, and the various (sometimes bizarre) groupings of thinkers that emerged. To some, the Six Day War enabled the Holocaust to move to a central focal location in Jewish identity, so that by the mid‐1970s, the Holocaust and the Israeli victory of 1967 were intertwined with Jewish pride and sense of responsibility to respond to threat with strength and self‐confidence.Less
The impact of the Six Day Israeli–Arab War of May–June 1967 on American Jewish life and especially in the way American Jews perceived Israel and the Holocaust is considered. The events of that summer and the changing character of American life shaped the constituencies for the post‐Holocaust Jewish thinkers; they also helped to shape them and their work. The chapter discusses the reactions of the young Jewish radicals, and the various (sometimes bizarre) groupings of thinkers that emerged. To some, the Six Day War enabled the Holocaust to move to a central focal location in Jewish identity, so that by the mid‐1970s, the Holocaust and the Israeli victory of 1967 were intertwined with Jewish pride and sense of responsibility to respond to threat with strength and self‐confidence.
Michael L. Morgan
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195148626
- eISBN:
- 9780199870011
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195148622.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
In this chapter, and in the next four, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Richard ...
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In this chapter, and in the next four, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Richard Rubinstein, a prominent Jewish theologian, but not institutionally tied to one of the denominations of American Judaism; he was a Hillel rabbi and then an academic. Citations of each thinker's work earlier in the book are capitalized on in order to explore the theme of history and identity as it occurs in their work, and it is shown that these figures struggled with very deep and pressing problems not only about God and the Jewish people, and about human nature and moral purpose but also about the very nature of Jewish belief and its understanding of the world, history, God, and much else. They realized the dangers that accompanied their sensitivity to the Holocaust and their unconditional commitment to a honest and probing encounter with the death camps, and at the same time, they refused to abandon Judaism. In some ways, they appear like other intellectuals of the current era, who realize that we cannot transcend history nor can we be overwhelmed by it, but in other ways, they appear unlike them, for their sense of value and purpose arises out of the horror of the death camps.Less
In this chapter, and in the next four, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Richard Rubinstein, a prominent Jewish theologian, but not institutionally tied to one of the denominations of American Judaism; he was a Hillel rabbi and then an academic. Citations of each thinker's work earlier in the book are capitalized on in order to explore the theme of history and identity as it occurs in their work, and it is shown that these figures struggled with very deep and pressing problems not only about God and the Jewish people, and about human nature and moral purpose but also about the very nature of Jewish belief and its understanding of the world, history, God, and much else. They realized the dangers that accompanied their sensitivity to the Holocaust and their unconditional commitment to a honest and probing encounter with the death camps, and at the same time, they refused to abandon Judaism. In some ways, they appear like other intellectuals of the current era, who realize that we cannot transcend history nor can we be overwhelmed by it, but in other ways, they appear unlike them, for their sense of value and purpose arises out of the horror of the death camps.
Michael L. Morgan
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195148626
- eISBN:
- 9780199870011
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195148622.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
In this chapter, and in Chs. 6, and 8–10, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Eliezer ...
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In this chapter, and in Chs. 6, and 8–10, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Eliezer Berkovits, an orthodox Jewish theologian and philosopher. Citations of each thinker's work earlier in the book are capitalized on in order to explore the theme of history and identity as it occurs in their work, and it is shown that these figures struggled with very deep and pressing problems not only about God and the Jewish people, and about human nature and moral purpose but also about the very nature of Jewish belief and its understanding of the world, history, God, and much else. They realized the dangers that accompanied their sensitivity to the Holocaust and their unconditional commitment to an honest and probing encounter with the death camps, and at the same time, they refused to abandon Judaism. In some ways, they appear like other intellectuals of the current era, who realize that we cannot transcend history nor can we be overwhelmed by it, but in other ways, they appear unlike them, for their sense of value and purpose arises out of the horror of the death camps.Less
In this chapter, and in Chs. 6, and 8–10, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Eliezer Berkovits, an orthodox Jewish theologian and philosopher. Citations of each thinker's work earlier in the book are capitalized on in order to explore the theme of history and identity as it occurs in their work, and it is shown that these figures struggled with very deep and pressing problems not only about God and the Jewish people, and about human nature and moral purpose but also about the very nature of Jewish belief and its understanding of the world, history, God, and much else. They realized the dangers that accompanied their sensitivity to the Holocaust and their unconditional commitment to an honest and probing encounter with the death camps, and at the same time, they refused to abandon Judaism. In some ways, they appear like other intellectuals of the current era, who realize that we cannot transcend history nor can we be overwhelmed by it, but in other ways, they appear unlike them, for their sense of value and purpose arises out of the horror of the death camps.
Michael L. Morgan
- Published in print:
- 2001
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780195148626
- eISBN:
- 9780199870011
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195148622.003.0009
- Subject:
- Religion, Judaism
In this chapter, and in Chs. 6–7, and 9–10, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Irving ...
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In this chapter, and in Chs. 6–7, and 9–10, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Irving Greenberg, an orthodox rabbi and deeply traditional figure, but also a bold and radical Jewish thinker. Citations of each thinkers work earlier in the book are capitalized on in order to explore the theme of history and identity as it occurs in their work, and it is shown that these figures struggled with very deep and pressing problems not only about God and the Jewish people, and about human nature and moral purpose but also about the very nature of Jewish belief and its understanding of the world, history, God, and much else. They realized the dangers that accompanied their sensitivity to the Holocaust and their unconditional commitment to an honest and probing encounter with the death camps, and at the same time, they refused to abandon Judaism. In some ways, they appear like other intellectuals of the current era, who realize that we cannot transcend history nor can we be overwhelmed by it, but in other ways, they appear unlike them, for their sense of value and purpose arises out of the horror of the death camps.Less
In this chapter, and in Chs. 6–7, and 9–10, an analysis and examination is made of the writings of the major American Jewish thinkers/theologians. The thinker addressed in this chapter is Irving Greenberg, an orthodox rabbi and deeply traditional figure, but also a bold and radical Jewish thinker. Citations of each thinkers work earlier in the book are capitalized on in order to explore the theme of history and identity as it occurs in their work, and it is shown that these figures struggled with very deep and pressing problems not only about God and the Jewish people, and about human nature and moral purpose but also about the very nature of Jewish belief and its understanding of the world, history, God, and much else. They realized the dangers that accompanied their sensitivity to the Holocaust and their unconditional commitment to an honest and probing encounter with the death camps, and at the same time, they refused to abandon Judaism. In some ways, they appear like other intellectuals of the current era, who realize that we cannot transcend history nor can we be overwhelmed by it, but in other ways, they appear unlike them, for their sense of value and purpose arises out of the horror of the death camps.
