Jonathan Swift and Philosophy is the first book to analyse and interpret Swift’s writing from a philosophical angle. By placing key texts of Swift in their philosophical and cultural contexts and providing background to their history of ideas, it demonstrates how well informed Swift’s criticism of the politics, philosophy, and science of his age actually was. Moreover, it also sets straight preconceptions about Swift as ignorant about the scientific developments of his time.The auth...

The Who were one of the most memorable and influential of the 1960s British Invasion bands—memorable because of their loudness and because they destroyed instruments during performances, and influential because of their success in crafting “Power Pop” singles like “My Generation” and “I Can See for Miles,” long-playing albums Live at Leeds and Who’s Next, and the “rock operas” Tommy and Quadrophenia. The themes that principal songwriter Pete Townshend imparted into The Who’s music drew upo...

One of the most important literary figures during the Renaissance, Michel de Montaigne is best known for the literary form for which this work is titled. Montaigne perfected the essay as a literary art form and was the reason for its popularity later. At the age of 39, Montaigne retired in 1572 and spent his time leisurely reading and reflecting upon his life’s experiences. It was out of this time he wrote these essays on poetry, politics, love, war, religion, and so much more. Like many c...

In Eight Pillars of Prosperity, James Allen -- considered a founding father of the self-help genre -- expounds the importance of his "eight pillars of prosperity," namely, (1) energy, (2) economy, (3) integrity, (4) system, (5) sympathy, (6) sincerity, (7) impartiality, and (8) self-reliance. Within these are certain elements that further contribute to a life well-lived: promptitude, vigilance, industry, earnestness, moderation, efficiency, resourcefulness, originality, honesty, f...

Charles Darwin has now taken his place as one of the great scientific innovators of all time and has changed for ever the way we see ourselves, and our place in the universe. Even those who hold to the biblical account of creation and see Darwin's theory as a profound error can no longer take for granted that their beliefs are beyond question. Yet, the debate between the Creationists and the neo-Darwinians continues in full fury. One outcome of this has been to see Darwin's theory become e...

Pierre Bourdieu is one of the world's most important social theorists and is also one of the great empirical researchers in contemporary sociology. However, reading Bourdieu can be difficult for those not familiar with the French cultural context, and until now a comprehensive introduction to Bourdieu's oeuvre has not been available.David Swartz focuses on a central theme in Bourdieu's work—the complex relationship between culture and power—and explains that sociology for Bourdieu i...

The Person and the Common Good, originally published in 1947, presents Jacques Maritain's clearest and most sustained treatment of the person. He asks whether the person is simply the self and nothing more. After more than half a century, Maritain's question still has great validity, given the current inordinate preoccupation with individualism.Presenting with moving insight the relations between man, as a person and as an individual, and the society of which he is a part,...

The core of this book is a set of five lectures delivered by Habermas at Princeton in 1971 under the title 'Reflections on the Linguistic Foundation of Sociology'. These lectures offer a preliminary view of what would become The Theory of Communicative Action, and they form an excellent introduction to Habermas's ideas about communication and society. They lay out the general parameters of Habermas's project in an accessible way, and situate his work in relation to other theories ...

In the writings of Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Sally Howard Campbell finds the bridge between the now-dominant psycho-social conception of alienation and the legal-political conception that prevailed prior to Rousseau. She discusses Rousseau’s transformation of the concept of alienation and how it laid much of the groundwork for Marx’s later, more explicit discussions of man’s alienation. Using Discourse on the Origin and Foundations of Inequality, Campbell shows how Rousseau depicts the develo...

Albert Camus was a formative artist, writer and public figure whose work defies conventional labels, and whose legacy is controversial but substantial. His distinctive contribution to modern ethical and political thought remains far from settled. Camus and the Challenge of Political Thought comprehensively yet concisely explores how Camus's compelling ideas of absurdity and rebellion emerged, how his complex political engagements and positions developed, and how his conception of an ethics...

This book provides an important reappraisal of the concept of human nature in contemporary realist international-political theory. Developing a Freudian philosophical anthropology for political realism, he argues for the careful resurrection of the concept of human nature in the wider study of international relations.

This book examines the dependence of transhumanist arguments on the credibility of the narratives of meaning in which they are embedded. By taking the key ideas from transhumanist philosophy – the desirability of human self-design and immortality, the elimination of all suffering and the expansion of human autonomy – Michael Hauskeller explores these narratives and the understanding of human nature that informs them. Particular attention is paid to the theory of transhumanism as a form of ...