The Essential Leviathan: A Modernized Edition

Description

This edition of Leviathan is intended to provide the reader with a modestly abridged text that is straightforward and accessible, while preserving Hobbes' main lines of argument and of thought. It is meant for those who wish to focus primarily on the philosophical aspects of the work, apart from its stylish but often daunting early modern prose. The editors have updated language, style, punctuation, and grammar throughout.

Daniel P. Collette received the PhD in Philosophy from the University of South Florida in March 2016.

" Essential Leviathan is a translation of Hobbes' work, due to the fact that certain words and grammar have been altered to make the text more approachable. This 'translation' is very good: it makes the text highly accessible, certainly for the first time reader, but achieves this without jeopardizing original spirit or meaning. . . . Stanlick and Collette make up for a short introduction with a wealth of supporting footnotes, which give much needed information and clarification. This method has immediate benefits: it allows for the student to learn the background and context of Leviathan as they read through the text. . . . The footnotes on the intellectual context of Leviathan are particularly well done: they are both extensive and informative, and effectively enlighten the reader to the philosophical issues Hobbes was addressing. . . . [E]xcellent chapter introductions . . . effectively make the purpose of each individual chapter clearer, and link the arguments of different chapters together. . . . Educators . . . will certainly welcome Stanlick and Colette's modernized edition; it is a work which successfully makes Hobbes' arguments clear, approachable, and most importantly, relevant to the Twenty-First Century reader, whilst simultaneously maintaining the spirit and beauty of Hobbes' original text. " Ruairidh J Brown, University of Nottingham Ningbo China, in Hobbes Studies