History of Western Political Thought

Description

The third edition of this highly-regarded core textbook offers an accessible and impressively comprehensive account of Western Political Thought over the last two millennia. Structured in four main parts, the chapters are organised around a wide range of key themes, covering everything from Absolute Government and Revolutionary Political Thought to Politics and Freedom and Theories of Civil Disobedience. This new edition concludes with an Epilogue that considers the challenges posed to the history of Western political thought by the perspectives of post-colonialism and post-modernism. The use of boxes throughout the book to explain key thinkers in more detail, as well as the author's ability to express complex ideas in clear and jargon-free language, makes this the perfect text for helping students to understand the key debates, issues and continuities in the long history of political ideas. For undergraduate and postgraduate students studying courses on the history of political thought and theory, this is an indispensable guide. New to this Edition: - Expanded material on the history of international relations thinking, race consciousness, diversity and gender politics - A completely new Epilogue which focuses on a discussion of post-colonialism and post-modernism in relation to political theory - Additional 'Thinker' boxes, alongside revised and updated suggestions for further reading

JOHN MORROW is Professor of Political Studies and Deputy Vice-Chancellor at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

This new edition is a welcome presence in the market for textbook introductions to Western political thought. It is clear, comprehensive, and broad - the kind of book that covers all the bases. It is a reliable one-stop-shop of Western political ideas that any student of the subject will be able to access. * Graeme Garrard, Cardiff University, UK * This textbook provides students with a comprehensive introduction to a wide range of attempts to solve the perennial problems that characterise Western political thought. In synthesising the responses of a multitude of figures, from Ancient Greece to the turn to the post-modern, it gives an excellent introduction to how the canon of political theory can provide answers to the questions of where power lies, how it should be exercised, and where it can be resisted. Its value to students lies not only in its clear presentation of established figures in the discipline but also in its highlighting of the distinct contributions to this tradition that are made by neglected figures such as Du Bois, Douglass, Fanon and Goldman. * Ben Turner, University of Kent, UK * John Morrow's History of Western political Thought is astonishing in its breadth and admirable in its accessibility. Morrow is a talented writer and thinker who makes it easy to understand complicated arguments while still honouring the complexity and multiplicity of what we call Western political thought. * Susan McWilliams, Pomona College, USA * In this clearly written and expertly presented history of Western political thought, John Morrow departs from the standard chronological treatment of "big thinkers" and instead highlights key themes. The volume also makes an effort to recognise how certain ideas were applied in ways that excluded large sections of society, and Morrow includes consideration of several thinkers - often overlooked - who played important roles in challenging inherited ideas about female or racial inferiority. The book also features an interesting consideration of theories of revolution, resistance and civil disobedience. * Miriam Bankovsky, La Trobe University, Australia * Finally, a text for political thought that is attentive to the history of political thought, lays out the core ideas and arguments of Western political thought with formidable philosophic clarity and is mercifully free from the jargon of much contemporary political philosophy. My students love the plain language explanations of the political ideas and arguments that circle around them in public discourse. * Lindsey MacDonald, University of Canterbury, New Zealand *