Neither a polemic nor a highly specialized study, this book is a comprehensive assessment of Burke's political thought. Using evidence from such neglected sources as Burke's essays on history and law and making full use of his extensive correspondence, the author places Burke in the context of developments in a number of areas of eighteenth-century British intellectual life, ranging from philosophy to literature, and presents him as a key figure in the evolution of the theory and practice of representative government.
“A little masterpiece of originality and clarity.”—George Steiner “A necessary book.”—Roberto Saviano “A wonderful little book that will delight you.”—François Busnel International Best Seller / Now in English for the First Time In this thought-provoking and extremely timely work, Nuccio Ordine convincingly argues for the utility of useless knowledge and against the contemporary fixation on utilitarianism—for the fundamental importance of the liberal arts and against the damage caused by their neglect. Inspired by the reflections of great philosophers and writers (e.g., Plato, Dante, Montaigne, Shakespeare, Borges, and Calvino), Ordine reveals how the obsession for material goods and the cult of utility ultimately wither the spirit, jeopardizing not only schools and universities, art, and creativity, but also our most fundamental values—human dignity, love, and truth. Also included is Abraham Flexner’s 1939 essay “The Usefulness of Useless Knowledge,” which originally prompted Ordine to write this book. Flexner—a founder and the first director of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton—offers an impassioned defense of curiosity-driven research and learning.
Empire and Community provides the first comprehensive presentation of Edmund Burke’s thinking on international relations. Although Burke’s writings and speeches have been the subject of much analysis and controversy, his perspective on international relations has not been fully addressed by the scholarly community. David P. Fidler and Jennifer M. Welsh establish Burke as a “classical thinker” on international relations and help to situate his thinking within current international relations theory. Their detailed introduction is followed by edited selections from Burke’s writings and speeches on Ireland, America, India, and the French Revolution.
The Blackwell Guide to Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethicsilluminates Aristotle’s ethics for both academics andstudents new to the work, with sixteen newly commissioned essays bydistinguished international scholars. The structure of the book mirrors the organization of theNichomachean Ethics itself. Discusses the human good, the general nature of virtue, thedistinctive characteristics of particular virtues, voluntariness,self-control, and pleasure.
When it comes to questions of religion, legal scholars face a predicament. They often expect to resolve dilemmas according to general principles of equality, neutrality, or the separation of church and state. But such abstractions fail to do justice to the untidy welter of values at stake. Offering new views of how to understand and protect religious freedom in a democracy, The Tragedy of Religious Freedom challenges the idea that matters of law and religion should be referred to far-flung theories about the First Amendment. Examining a broad array of contemporary and more established Supreme Court rulings, Marc DeGirolami explains why conflicts implicating religious liberty are so emotionally fraught and deeply contested. Twenty-first-century realities of pluralism have outrun how scholars think about religious freedom, DeGirolami asserts. Scholars have not been candid enough about the tragic nature of the conflicts over religious liberty—the clash of opposing interests and aspirations they entail, and the limits of human reason to resolve intractable differences. The Tragedy of Religious Freedom seeks to turn our attention from abstracted, absolute values to concrete, historical realities. Social history, characterized by the struggles of lawyers engaged in the details of irreducible conflicts, represents the most promising avenue to negotiate legal conflicts over religion. In this volume, DeGirolami offers an approach to understanding religious liberty that is neither rigidly systematic nor ad hoc, but a middle path grounded in a pluralistic and historically informed perspective.
Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield was a statesman, diplomat, man of letters and acclaimed wit of the eighteenth century. His winning manners and urbanity were praised by many, including Alexander Pope, John Gay and Voltaire. Although an accomplished essayist and epigrammatist, Chesterfield’s literary reputation today derives from ‘Letters to His Son’, as well as ‘Letters to His Godson’, which are in fact works of private correspondence and paternal and avuncular advice, never intended for publication. As a handbook for worldly success in the eighteenth century, they provide humorous, perceptive and nuanced advice for how a gentleman should conduct himself at all times. For the first time in digital printing, this eBook presents Chesterfield’s complete works, with numerous illustrations, rare texts, informative introductions and the usual Delphi bonus material. (Version 1) * Beautifully illustrated with images relating to Chesterfield’s life * Concise introductions to the texts * All the celebrated Letters, with individual contents tables * Useful quotation editions of the more famous letters * Features many rare prose works for the first time in digital publishing * Excellent formatting of the texts * Rare poetry, speeches, dialogues and addresses only available in this eBook * Important essays from periodicals * Easily locate the texts you want to read * Features a bonus biography – discover Chesterfield’s literary life * Ordering of texts into chronological order and genres CONTENTS: The Letters The Drapier’s Letter to the Good People of Ireland (1745) Letters to His Son on the Art of Becoming a Man of the World and a Gentleman (1774) Principles of Politeness and of Knowing the World (1786) Letters to His Godson (1890) Other Correspondence Letters, Sentences and Maxims (1903) Quotations from ‘Letters to His Son’ Other Prose Works Speeches in the House of Lords Miscellaneous Addresses and Other Works Essays in Periodicals Dialogues The Poetry Miscellaneous Verses The Biography Philip Dormer Stanhope (1900) by Sidney Lee
