The Modern Political Tradition: Hobbes to Habermas

De: Lawrence Cahoone, The Great Courses

Narrado por: Lawrence Cahoone

Without even realizing it, we all use the fruits of political philosophy. From liberty to democracy to community, the terms and concepts originated by political philosophers are ingrained in our global consciousness. Yet many of us have an incomplete picture of how these ideas developed and, quite possibly, a skewed perception of their intentions and implications.

This highly relevant course sheds light on the labyrinth of Western political and social theory, as well as its influence on modern history. Guided by an award-winning professor of philosophy and author, these eye-opening lectures reveal how political philosophers, in responding to the societal problems and changing conditions of their day in revolutionary ways, created virtual blueprints of action for leaders. You'll gain not only the tools to comprehend the omnipresent language of politics, but a thorough understanding of the wellspring of thought that has emerged over centuries of political philosophy and the intellectual origins of major historical movements and events.

Throughout, questions of democracy, freedom, and distributive justice are addressed, and revolutionary figures who have left an indelible mark on history - from Niccolo Machiavelli to Ayn Rand - are encountered.

By the conclusion of lecture 36, you will have the context necessary to appreciate the evolution of a myriad of political ideas, including hot-button topics of today such as libertarianism, neoconservatism, feminism, and environmentalism.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2014 The Great Courses (P)2014 The Teaching Company, LLC

Political philosophy

A political philosophy course by Great Courses/Audible, it includes a detailed PDF. Several areas made me think and gave me a greater appreciation about why socialism came about and just how short a timespan is involved. It mainly covers since about 1700. It also is about philosophy and doesn't cover current US politics.

Since I mainly interested in STEM, I never really thought about what this course covers. If you're in that camp, it's worth it.

PDF
LECTURE 1 Origins and Conflicts of Modern Politics .............................................4
LECTURE 2 Ancient Republics, Empires, Fiefdoms .............................................11
LECTURE 3 Machiavelli’s New Order ...................................................................18
LECTURE 4 Hobbes, Natural Law, the Social Contract ........................................25
LECTURE 5 Locke on Limited Government and Toleration ..................................32
LECTURE 6 Rousseau’s Republican Community .................................................39
LECTURE 7 Kant’s Ethics of Duty and Natural Rights ..........................................46
LECTURE 8 Smith and the Market Revolution .....................................................53
LECTURE 9 Montesquieu and the American Founding ........................................60
LECTURE 10 Debating the French Revolution .......................................................68
LECTURE 11 Legacies of the Revolution—Right to Left ........................................75
LECTURE 12 Nationalism and a People’s War.......................................................82
LECTURE 13 Civil Society—Constant, Hegel, Tocqueville .....................................89
LECTURE 14 Mill on Liberty and Utility...................................................................97
LECTURE 15 Marx’s Critique of Capitalism ..........................................................104
LECTURE 16 Modern vs. Traditional Society .......................................................112
LECTURE 17 Progressivism and New Liberalism ................................................119
LECTURE 18 Fleeing Liberalism—Varieties of Socialism .....................................126
LECTURE 19 Fleeing Liberalism—Fascism and Carl Schmitt ..............................134
LECTURE 20 Totalitarianism and Total War .........................................................142
LECTURE 21 Conservative or Neoliberal—Oakeshott, Hayek .............................149
LECTURE 22 Reviving the Public Realm—Hannah Arendt ..................................157
LECTURE 23 Philosophy vs. Politics—Strauss and Friends ................................164
LECTURE 24 Marcuse and the New Left..............................................................171
LECTURE 25 Rawls’s A Theory of Justice............................................................179
LECTURE 26 Ayn Rand, Robert Nozick, Libertarianism .......................................186
LECTURE 27 What about Community? ................................................................193
LECTURE 28 Walzer on Everything Money Shouldn’t Buy ..................................200
LECTURE 29 Identity Politics—Feminism ............................................................207
LECTURE 30 Identity Politics—Multiculturalism ...................................................214
LECTURE 31 The Politics of Nature—Environmentalism .....................................222
LECTURE 32 Postmodernism, Truth, and Power .................................................230
LECTURE 33 Habermas—Democracy as Communication ..................................237
LECTURE 34 The End of History? Clash of Civilizations?....................................244
LECTURE 35 Just Wars? The Problem of Dirty Hands ........................................252
LECTURE 36 Why Political Philosophy Matters ...................................................259

An Excellent Course

I have no prior experience in philosophy and have been turning to audible to fill this gap in my knowledge. After struggling with the Great Ideas of Philosophy 2nd edition I tried this book instead and couldn’t put it down. Excellent work I wish everyone would listen to it and I know I will repeat listen.

Excellent

It is very interesting to learn how it is people’s thinking what structures and originates the laws and values that we now consider “normal”. It is of capital importance to realize that one way of thinking is not right and the other wrong, but that we should be able to chose between what we consider to be the best for the majority, for everyone or for ourselves. Of course, there are thoughts that favor some people more and other people less, but we have the right to choose the view that is better suited for our own benefit, and for that of the majority in a democratic society.
Moreover, this audiobook teaches us that we also have to be careful with what is called the tyranny of the majority, and pay attention in a more rational way to the wider reality and not only to the words of the politicians we may like or dislike, or to the basis or unique ideology of what we have been thought to believe is right.
Truth is liberating, and this audiobook helps to understand the political reality of our countries; where we are, and where we want to go.

great courses. Very engaging

it seems as though the professor has Friedrich Nietzsche in his mind during the whole narration. He also discounts any and all contributions from religions of today to political theory and discourse of today. aside from this the course is excellent. I would recommend it to anyone so long as what I have previously mentioned has been stated to the listener. perhaps one lecture to give at least context to religious political contributions along side Nietzsche would do nicely.

A course like this should be required in school

I was drawn I. to this course from the very first lecture. Professor Cahoone is an excellent lecturer. There are moments where he misspeaks and then corrects himself, but I felt this added a sense of realism and humanity to the lectures. He does an excellent job of distilling complex ideas I to easily digestible nuggets. I think anyone with an interest in politics would benefit greatly from. this course.

Covers it all.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend it as a good introduction to many current political ideas and themes.

What about Professor Lawrence Cahoone’s performance did you like?

He is a strong reader and a clear communicator.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No. You need to absorb a bit at a time.

Any additional comments?

I am a fan of Cahoone, having also done his "Modern Intellectual Tradition" Great Courses. However, I found he relied on buzzwords and references to names a little too much here, particularly in the last half/third of the lectures, and some of it was hard to follow. But it did introduce me to many contempory political thinkers that I was unaware of. And Cahoone is a great communicator, so I enjoyed it very much.

decent

A great primer on political philosophy. However Carl Schmitt was not a fascist and Leo Strauss could've been more focused on

I wish I'd read this sooner!

I learned so much from this! I immediately want to listen again and take notes the second time. So many things make more sense now, and it's very encouraging to know that I'm not alone in some of the ideas I've thought of on my own. Thank you to Lawrence Cahoon and The Great Courses for this course.

Amazing objective and descriptive analysis .

Great narration.
Thoroughly enjoyed it.
Some comcepts were difficult but it's worth researching.
Will go through one more time.
Will recommend to others.

Great Foundation in Modern Political Philosophy

A great intro course for Modern Political Philosophy. Providing lectures on a wide range of notable thinkers such as Machiavelli, Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau, Kant. Smith, Montesquieu, Burke, Paine, Clausewitz, Hegel, Marx's, Schmitt, Hayek, Rawls, and others. The information in these lectures is almost essential to understanding much of modern political ideas and development. Beyond the first few lectures the timeline runs mid 17th century to the modern age.

Although professor Cahoone's delivery can be slightly monotone at times, for the most part its easy to stay engaged and understand the material even if you have no background on the subject or political philosophy in general.