Synopses & Reviews
In this classic work, Leo Strauss examines the problem of natural right and argues that there is a firm foundation in reality for the distinction between right and wrong in ethics and politics. On the centenary of Strauss's birth, and the fiftieth anniversary of the Walgreen Lectures which spawned the work,
Natural Right and History remains as controversial and essential as ever.
"Strauss . . . makes a significant contribution towards an understanding of the intellectual crisis in which we find ourselves . . . [and] brings to his task an admirable scholarship and a brilliant, incisive mind."—John H. Hallowell, American Political Science Review
Leo Strauss (1899-1973) was the Robert Maynard Hutchins Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in Political Science at the University of Chicago.
Synopsis
The problem of natural right is one of the most controversial and significant issues in contemporary political and social philosophy. Leo Strauss, eminent author of The Political Philosophy of Hobbes, examines the current status of this problem and shows that the reasons which have led to a rejection of natural right are not valid.
About the Author
Leo Strauss (1899–1973) was one of the preeminent political philosophers of the twentieth century. He is the author of many books, among them
The Political Philosophy of Hobbes,
Natural Right and History,and
Spinoza’s Critique of Religion, all published by the University of Chicago Press.
Table of Contents
Introduction
I. Natural Right and the Historical Approach
II. Natural Right and the Distinction between Facts and Values
III. The Origin of the Idea of Natural Right
IV. Classic Natural Right
V. Modern Natural Right
A. Hobbes
B. Locke
VI. The Crisis of Modern Natural Right
A. Rousseau
B. Burke
Index