Synopses & Reviews
In this volume, Dr Bunce (University of Cambridge) introduces Hobbes' ambitious philosophical project to discover the principles that govern the social world. If Hobbes' immodest assessment that he successfully attained this goal may be disputed, Bunce nevertheless captures the extraordinary enduring value of Hobbes' work for the contemporary reader. Thomas Hobbes's name and the title of his most famous work, Leviathan, have come to be synonymous with the idea that the natural state of humankind is 'nasty, brutish, and short' and only the intervention of a munificent overlord may spare men and women from this unenviable fate by imposing order where there would otherwise be chaos. The problem that Hobbes formulated resonates through the centuries as the enduring dilemma of political organisation and social cooperation. Indeed it can be seen today in fields as diverse as theoretical game theory and international relations.
About the Author
Dr Bunce completed a PhD on Hobbes' thought and teaches at the University of Cambridge, UK
Table of Contents
Series IntroductionSeries Editor's Preface AcknowledgementsChapter 1. Hobbes's LifeEarly LifeEmployment as a HumanistHobbes and the New SciencePhilosopher in ExileReturn to EnglandLast YearsConclusion: life and philosophy
Chapter 2. Hobbes's Civil Philosophy IntroductionThe nature of Hobbes's political thoughtHobbes's WorksHuman Nature: Reason, Knowledge, Imagination, and PassionMan, Born Unfit for SocietyThe Condition of Mere NatureThe Laws of NaturePersons, Authors, Representation, and the StateThe Creation of the State Through Mutual CovenantsTypes of SovereigntyThe Rights and Duties of the SovereignLiberty Under the SovereignThe Life of the CommonwealthThe FoolThe Death of the CommonwealthConclusion: The Science of Natural Justice
Chapter 3. Reception and InterpretationIntroductionHobbism and AtheismHobbes's DisciplesHuman Nature and the State of NatureSocial Contract and the StateObligation and LawHobbes as a Theorist of Bourgeois SocietyHobbes and the Prisoner's DilemmaHobbes the ScepticHobbes and RhetoricConclusion: Understanding Hobbes
Chapter 4. Hobbes TodayNew Leviathan and TotalitarianismBack to Nature Hobbes and Contemporary ConservatismLiberal Before LiberalismConclusion
Suggested Further ReadingHobbes's LifeHobbes's WorksNatural Philosophy, Mathematics, and Language TheologyEthics and Political ThoughtReception
BibliographyIndex