Liberty, rationality, and agency in Hobbes's Leviathan / David van Mill.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Van Mill, David, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Liberty.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (266 pages)

Place of Publication:

Albany, New York : State University of New York Press, [2001]

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Marking a significant departure from most scholarship on Hobbes, this book offers new interpretations of his theories of freedom, agency, rationality, morality, psychology, and politics. Hobbes's arguments concerning many different aspects of civil society and human psychology are brought together to provide a comprehensive theory of agency. Hobbes's theory of freedom is demonstrated to be considerably more complicated than previously thought, revealing a concern with both "internal" and "external" conditions of action. On close examination Hobbes can be seen to move beyond his limited definition of negative liberty and to champion autonomous rational action. Throughout, the book evaluates the relevance of this reformulation for contemporary debates in political philosophy.

Contents:

Front Matter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction and Theoretical Framework

Introduction

The Scope of Freedom

Freedom, Autonomy, Rationality, and Morality

Hobbes and Negative Freedom

The Internal Conditions of Freedom: Complex Instrumental Rationality and Autonomy

The Internal Conditions of Freedom: Substantive Rationality and Autonomy

Voluntarism and Morality

External Freedom

Freedom, Equality, and the Laws of Nature

Conclusion

Hobbes’s Dualism

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780791490297

0791490297