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Leo Strauss and the Recovery of Medieval Political Philosophy
Language:
English
Published/Copyright:
2016
About this book
A thorough treatment of Leo Strauss's controversial interpretation of medieval political thought
Leo Strauss is known primarily for reviving classical political philosophy. Strauss recovered that great tradition of thought largely lost to the West by beginning his study of classical thought with its teaching on politics rather than its metaphysics. What brought Strauss to this way of reading the classics, however, was a discovery he made as a young political scientist studying the obscure texts of Islamic and Jewish medieval political thought.
In this volume, Joshua Parens examines Strauss's investigations of medieval political philosophy, offering interpretations of his writings on the great thinkers of that tradition, including interpretations of his most difficult writings on Alfarabi and Maimonides. In addition Parens explicates Strauss's statements on Christian medieval thought and his argument for rejecting the Scholastic paradigm as a method for interpreting Islamic and Jewish thought. Contrasting Scholasticism with Islamic and Jewish medieval political philosophy, Parens clarifies the theme of Strauss's thought, what Strauss calls the "theologico-political problem," and reveals the significance of medieval political philosophy in the Western tradition.
Joshua Parens is professor of philosophy and politics and dean of the Braniff Graduate School at the University of Dallas.
Leo Strauss is known primarily for reviving classical political philosophy. Strauss recovered that great tradition of thought largely lost to the West by beginning his study of classical thought with its teaching on politics rather than its metaphysics. What brought Strauss to this way of reading the classics, however, was a discovery he made as a young political scientist studying the obscure texts of Islamic and Jewish medieval political thought.
In this volume, Joshua Parens examines Strauss's investigations of medieval political philosophy, offering interpretations of his writings on the great thinkers of that tradition, including interpretations of his most difficult writings on Alfarabi and Maimonides. In addition Parens explicates Strauss's statements on Christian medieval thought and his argument for rejecting the Scholastic paradigm as a method for interpreting Islamic and Jewish thought. Contrasting Scholasticism with Islamic and Jewish medieval political philosophy, Parens clarifies the theme of Strauss's thought, what Strauss calls the "theologico-political problem," and reveals the significance of medieval political philosophy in the Western tradition.
Joshua Parens is professor of philosophy and politics and dean of the Braniff Graduate School at the University of Dallas.
Topics
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Frontmatter
i -
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Contents
v -
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Foreword
vii -
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Acknowledgments
xiii -
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Abbreviations
xv -
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Introduction
1 - Part one. The Peculiar Platonism of Alfarabi and Maimonides
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Chapter one. The Comprehensiveness of Political Philosophy in Alfarabi and Maimonides
11 -
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Chapter two. Law, Prophecy, and Philosopher as King and Outcast
17 -
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Chapter three. Vipers, Weeds, and Disorder in the Whole
27 - Part two. Strauss’s Departure from the Christian Scholastic Paradigm
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Chapter four. Escaping the Scholastic Paradigm
39 -
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Chapter five. Spinoza’s Scholasticism and Alfarabi’s Platonism
55 -
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Chapter six. The Differing Places of Metaphysics in Alfarabi and Thomas Aquinas
67 - Part three. Strauss on Alfarabi and Maimonides in the 1930s through the 1950s
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Chapter seven. From Political Philosophy to Enlightened Kalām: The 1930s and 1940s
83 -
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Chapter eight. Maimonides’s Secretiveness about Political Philosophy: The 1950s
95 - Part four. Political Philosophy as First Philosophy
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Chapter nine. Theoretical Philosophy, Political Philosophy, and Happiness
113 -
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Chapter ten. Maimonides’s Guide as a Work of Political Philosophy
119 -
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Chapter eleven. Da capo: An Introduction to the Guide
125 -
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Appendix: A Critique of Pines’s “Limitations” Article
137 -
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Notes
149 -
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Bibliography
179 -
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Index
187
Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
February 21, 2024
eBook ISBN:
9781782047650
Original publisher:
University of Rochester Press
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook ISBN:
9781782047650
Keywords for this book
Leo Strauss; classical thought; philosophy; political science; religion and classics; medieval philosophy; Alfarabi; Maimonides; history o politics; middle ages; sociology; anthropology; cultural studies
Audience(s) for this book
For an expert adult audience, including professional development and academic research
