Political Philosophy
Freedom's Frailty
Draws on Guo Xiang's commentary on the Zhuangzi to construct an account of freedom that is both metaphysical and political.
Adorno, Heidegger, and the Politics of Truth
A critical and creative reconstruction of Adorno's conception of truth that shows its relevance for contemporary philosophy, art, and politics.
Confucian Iconoclasm
Challenges deep-seated assumptions about the traditionalist nature of Confucianism by providing a new interpretation of the emergence of modern Confucianism in Republican China.
Damned Agitator
The most comprehensive collection of writings by an important twentieth-century radical writer.
Critical Theory from the Margins
Putting at work a negative pedagogy centered around learning from unlearning, problematizes and boldly challenges today's culturalist discourses, camouflaged racisms, and masked fascisms.
Equality and Excellence in Ancient and Modern Political Philosophy
Interpretations of critically important texts in political philosophy from Greek antiquity to modern times on the tension between human excellence and equality and its possible resolution.
Tradition and the Deliberative Turn
Reframes the discussion of deliberative democracy in a unique fashion, approaching the debate as a historical conversation.
Truth and Politics
Endorses the pursuit of paradigm shifts in our understandings of faith, truth, and nature to remedy the "underside" of modernity and thus to inaugurate a post-modern (but not anti-modern) and post-secular (but not anti-secular) view of the world.
Animals in the World
Five innovative essays demonstrating how Aristotle's biology is an integral part of Aristotle's understanding of the universe.
Deconstructive Constitutionalism
Investigates, by way of Derrida's engagements with Kant, how the foundations of modern constitutionalism can be differently conceived to address some of the challenges of the twenty-first century.
Myth and Authority
Argues that Giambattista Vico's early modern account of Roman mythology was a sophisticated attempt to present an epistemological and political critique of the aristocratic way of conceiving the world.
Opining Beauty Itself
Argues that Plato thinks that ordinary people grapple with the Forms and can make epistemological progress, even if they never achieve knowledge.
Plato's Stranger
Meditation on the character of the Eleatic Stranger in Plato's late dialogues, arguing that the prominent place afforded to this foreigner—the other—represents an important philosophical and political legacy regarding the way thought, and life in the community, is understood.
Hobbes and the Democratic Imaginary
A critical interrogation of elements of Hobbes's political and natural philosophy and its capacity to enrich our understanding of the nature of democratic life.
Full Responsibility
Explores the basic forms of responsibility that we willingly assume and the collaborative fulfillment that we find in each.
Liberating Revolution
Provides a novel conceptual and practical theory of revolution, engaging previous theories of revolution, contemporary continental philosophy, and systems theory.
The Shadow of Totalitarianism
Examines the relationship of evil, action, and judgment in the work of Immanuel Kant, Hannah Arendt, and Jean-François Lyotard.
The Future of the World Is Open
Conversations with prominent Italian feminist thinkers Lea Melandri, Luisa Muraro, and Adriana Cavaero, as well as three essays - appearing in English for the first time - by author, journalist, and renown political figure Rossana Rossanda.
Leo Strauss on Democracy, Technology, and Liberal Education
The first book-length study of Leo Strauss' understanding of the relation between modern democracy, technology, and liberal education.
A Dangerous Passion
Shows the importance of honor for leaders, both as a source of noble ambition to pursue the public good and as dangerous temptation to seek glory through domination.
Ummah
Offers the Islamic concept of ummah as an alternative to the nation-state.
Seeing with Free Eyes
Examines the ideas of justice in Euripidean tragedy, which reveals the human experience of justice to be paradoxical, and reminds us of the need for humility in our unceasing quest for a just world.
Open Borders
Offers a dialogue about the future of the nature of the human, technology, metaphysical foundations, globalization, and social and political oppression.
Bastard Politics
Argues that we need to reinvent sovereignty as a motive for democratic political action while remaining alert to its dangers, specifically its relationship to violence.
Endangered Excellence
A fresh look at Aristotle’s political theory with attention to the resonance of his thought for contemporary concerns.
The Specter of Babel
Presents a new way of thinking about fundamental political concepts such as freedom, justice, and the common good.
The Disintegration of Community
Analysis of this important Mexican philosopher's social, cultural, and political writings.
Recovering the Liberal Spirit
Develops a theory of spiritual freedom and explores its relationship to problems of liberal political regimes.
Contribution to the Correction of the Public's Judgments on the French Revolution
First translation into English of Fichte’s major work on the French Revolution.
On Metaphysical Necessity
Emphasizes the importance of metaphysical necessity to both philosophical theology and, through it, to moral and political theory.
Cosmopolitan Civility
Essays reflecting on the prolific, pioneering, and wide-ranging scholarship of Fred Dallmayr.
Leo Strauss and the Theopolitics of Culture
This archive-based study of the philosophy of Leo Strauss provides in-depth interpretations of key texts and their larger theoretical contexts.
Conflict in Aristotle's Political Philosophy
Offers a careful analysis of how Aristotle understands civil war, partisanship, distrust in government, disagreement, and competition, and explores ways in which these views are relevant to contemporary political theory.
Friedrich Engels and Modern Social and Political Theory
Offers a powerful new interpretation of Engels’s contributions to modern social and political theory.
Thoughtlessness and Decadence in Iran
Bridges Western and non-Western political thought to address the problem of democracy and political decadance in contemporary Iran and, by implication, similar Islamic societies.
Hegel and Right
An especially accessible introduction to Hegel’s moral and political philosophy.
Remnants of Hegel
An original philosophical exploration of the limits of Hegel's thought.
Roberto Esposito
Analyzes key concepts and arguments in the work of one of Europe’s leading philosophers.
Partial Truths and Our Common Future
Argues that a pluralistic understanding of truth can foster productive conversations about common concerns involving religion, science, ethics, politics, economics, and ecology without falling into relativism.
State Violence and Moral Horror
Explores the concept of "moral horror" as the experience of living amidst unjustifiable state violence.
Plato's Statesman
Explores the interplay between the dramatic form of the dialogue and the basic themes it addresses.
Whitehead's Religious Thought
Presents the process theistic thought of Whitehead as a third alternative between classical theism and religious skepticism.
Entanglements
Presents strikingly original and contemporary answers to the most traditional philosophical problems in epistemology, ethics, aesthetics, and political theory.
Philosophy, History, and Tyranny
The first comprehensive examination of the debate between Leo Strauss and Alexandre Kojève on the subject of philosophy and tyranny.
Containing Community
Analyzes the role of community in the writings of Giorgio Agamben, Roberto Esposito, and Jean-Luc Nancy.
Freedom from the Free Will
Brings Kafka’s fiction into conversation with philosophy and political theory.
Contemplating Friendship in Aristotle's Ethics
Examines how Aristotle posits political philosophy and the experience of friendship as a means to bind strictly intellectural virtue with morality.
Political Liberalism
Leading theorists explore the concept of political liberalism.
Chinese Thought as Global Theory
Using Chinese thought, explores how non-Western thought can structure generally applicable social and political theory.
Power
Deepens our understanding of power through a survey of how its dynamics have been understood from ancient times to the present.
Constitutionalism, Executive Power, and the Spirit of Moderation
Leading scholars and legal practitioners explore constitutional, legal, and philosophical topics.
Leo Strauss, Philosopher
European scholars discuss Leo Strauss as a major figure in the history of philosophy.
Principle and Prudence in Western Political Thought
Reflections on principle and prudence in the thoughts and actions of great thinkers and statesmen.
Political Theory and the Animal/Human Relationship
Examines how the animal/human divide has influenced power dynamics.
Contemporary Italian Political Philosophy
Highlights and critically assesses the work of contemporary Italian political philosophers.
Embracing Our Complexity
Using the thought of Christian thinker Thomas Aquinas and Neo-Confucian Zhu Xi, explores how to exercise and limit authority.
Machiavelli's Secret
Uncovers clues regarding the inner life of Machiavelli's political leaders.
The Ethics of Democracy
Demonstrates how the ethical underpinning of Hegel’s political and social philosophy has relevance for contemporary democratic life.
Thomas Hobbes
An introduction to Thomas Hobbes as a systematic and not merely political philosopher.
The Sophists in Plato's Dialogues
Draws out numerous affinities between the sophists and Socrates in Plato's dialogues.
Honor in Political and Moral Philosophy
Argues for revitalizing the place of honor in contemporary life.
Leo Strauss on the Borders of Judaism, Philosophy, and History
Explores how the thought of Leo Strauss amounts to a model for thinking about the connection between philosophy, Jewish thought, and history.
The Political Philosophy of Francis Bacon
An ambitious and radically original reading of philosopher Francis Bacon.
Res Publica
Analysis of Plato’s influence on the political thinking of Kant, Hegel, and Fichte.
The Laws of the Spirit
An account of Hegel's political insights and their contemporary relevance.
After Leo Strauss
Proposes a post-Straussian reading of Plato to advance a reconciliation of ancient and modern theories of natural right.
The Political Theory of Aristophanes
Examines the political dimensions of Aristophanes’ comic poetry.
Happiness as Enterprise
Examines the contemporary discourse on happiness through the lens of governmentality theory.
Leo Strauss and the Crisis of Rationalism
Examines the German and Jewish sources of Strauss's thought and the extent to which his philosophy can shed light on the crisis of liberal democracy.
Catastrophe and Redemption
Offers a striking new reading of Agamben’s political thought and its implications for political action in the present.
Progressive Minds, Conservative Politics
Compelling account of Strauss's mature Maimonidean writings.
Moments of Disruption
Explores the ethical and political implications of Levinas’s and Sartre’s accounts of human existence.
In the Spirit of Critique
Offers a new perspective on the political significance of the Hegelian dialectical legacy.
Wonder and Generosity
A compelling understanding of equality and difference in public life.
On the Ethics of Torture
A detailed, clear, and comprehensive overview of the current philosophical debate on toture.
The Lockean Commonwealth
Timely reappraisal of John Locke’s thoughts on the clash between executive emergency power and the importance of the rule of law.
Bound by the City
Explores the connections between sexual difference and political structure in ancient Greek tragedy.
The Democratic Ideal and the Shoah
An original and revolutionary interpretation of the Jews’ destiny in modern politics.
Democracy as Culture
Explores the significance of Dewey’s thought on democracy for the contemporary world.
The Illusion of Freedom and Equality
Explores how Enlightenment values have been transformed in a technological civilization.
City of Rhetoric
Examines the relationship of civic discourse to built environments through a case study of the Cabrini Green urban revitalization project in Chicago.
Deliberative Freedom
The first sustained look at the relationship between deliberative democratic theory and the topic of freedom.
Toward a Political Philosophy of Race
Examines how liberal society enables racism and other forms of discrimination.
The Ends of Solidarity
An in-depth look at the theory of solidarity of German philosopher Jürgen Habermas, serving also as a comprehensive introduction to his work.
Styles of Thought
Differentiates inquiry from interpretation in order to secure a foundation for truth.
Justice for Children
Applies the concept of personal and political autonomy to children and children’s development.
Imagining Law
Essays consider Drucilla Cornell’s contributions to philosophy, political theory, and legal studies.
Justice and Law
A collection of essays on contemporary issues in justice and law.
Against the State
Irreverent and incisive critique of liberal theories of the state.
Philosophy and the City
The definitive source book on philosophy and the city.
The Step Back
Explores the ethical and political possibilities of philosophy after deconstruction.
The Social Authority of Reason
Explores the social ramifications of Kant's concept of radical evil.
Revolt, Affect, Collectivity
Explores how the concept of revolution permeates and unifies Kristeva’s body of work.
Women and Children First
A critique of public policy rhetoric from multiple feminist perspectives.
Exquisite Rebel
Brings the writings of de Cleyre out of undeserved obscurity.
Homelessness, Citizenship, and Identity
Explores the political and economic causes and consequences of homelessness.
Love and Politics
Argues that love plays an essential—if often implicit—role in Hegel's mature theory of moral subjectivity and political community.
Aftereffects of Knowledge in Modernity
Examines the relations among knowledge, politics, aesthetics, and individuality.
Justice for All
Collection of essays adapted from an undergraduate honors conference held at Binghamton University which address contemporary issues in political philosophy.
The Tragedy of Liberalism
A defense of liberalism, understood as a perfectionist doctrine that presupposes an ideal but controversial notion of human well-being.