A history of political thought : property, labor, and commerce from Plato to Piketty / Jeffrey Bercuson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bercuson, Jeffrey, 1982- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Political science--Philosophy--History.

Political science.

Political science--Philosophy.

History.

Economics--Philosophy--History.

Economics.

Property--Philosophy--History.

Property.

Capitalism--Philosophy--History.

Capitalism.

Capitalism--Philosophy.

Economics--Philosophy.

Property--Philosophy.

Genre:

History.

Physical Description:

x, 284 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Toronto ; Buffalo ; London : University of Toronto Press, [2020]

Summary:

"A History of Political Thought is an accessible introduction to the history of political and economic thought; its main focus is the rise, and eventual consolidation, of modern market society. It asks: What are the effects of private property and commerce on individual well-being and on the stability of the political community? A History of Political Thought answers this central question through the careful study of political philosophers and economists, from ancient Greece to the twenty-first century. The book does not have an ideological agenda and gives equal voice to thinkers on opposite sides of the political spectrum. This is one of its key merits and a mark of distinction: its willingness to treat stark opponents - Hobbes and Locke, Smith and Marx, Keynes and Hayek, among others - as equally worthy of serious study. In doing so, the book provides students with a very powerful arsenal of ideas about the evolution of the market and also provides a solid introduction to the history of political thought."-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: 1. "The Less They Value Virtue": Plato, Aristotle, and Aquinas on the Corrupting Influence of Moneymaking

Personal and Political

2. "The Felicity of This Life": Machiavelli and Hobbes on the Possibility of Delightful Living

3. "The Desire of Having More": Locke on Labor and the Right to Accumulate without Limit

4. "A Course Intended by Nature": Smith and Kant on the Overwhelming Benefits of Commerce - Domestic and International

5. "Make Money Contemptible and, If Possible, Useless": Rousseau on Modern Discontent

6. "The Reason Which Shines Through": Hegel on the Ethical Dimensions of the Market

7. "Free, Conscious Activity": Marx on Alienation and the Path to Human Emancipation

8. "A Dozen Wise Men": Lenin on the Revolutionary Vanguard

9. "The Function of Industry": Tawney on the Demands of Equality and the Need for Democracy

10. "Reflection, Brooding, Worry, Love, and Hatred": Nietzsche on a Higher Concept of Culture

11. "The Nobler Exercise of the Faculties": Keynes on the Art of Enjoyment

12. "A Narrow Field of Vision": Hayek on the Limits of Knowledge

13. "The Curse of Money": Rawls on Plutocracy and the Demands of Economic Justice

14. "An Endless Spiral": Piketty on the Dynamics of Wealth and Income Inequality in the Twenty-First Century.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Format:

Online version: Bercuson, Jeffrey, 1982- History of political thought.

ISBN:

9781487508517

1487508514

1487525907

9781487525903

OCLC:

1146551891

Publisher Number:

99988334602