Political Theory of Possessive Individualism: Hobbes to Locke - Paperback
$28.99
Quantity
01
Pay over time for orders over $35.00 with
Offers & Perks
Earn 28 points with this purchase
Added to your rewards balance after checkout.
100 points welcome bonus
Create an account and start with extra points.
Availability:In StockContributor:C. B. MacPherson, Frank CunninghamSeries:Wynford ProjectPublish date:2011-03-18Pages:328
Languages:EnglishPublisher:Oxford University Press CanadaISBN-13:9780195444018ISBN-10:195444019UPC:9780195444018Book Category:Political Science, PhilosophyBook Subcategory:History & Theory, PoliticalSize:7.90 x 5.20 x 0.60 inchesWeight:0.55Product ID:SC11PPK4MZ
This seminal work by political philosopher C.B. Macpherson was first published by the Clarendon Press in 1962, and remains of key importance to the study of liberal-democratic theory half-a-century later. In it, Macpherson argues that the chief difficulty of the notion of individualism that
underpins classical liberalism lies in what he calls its possessive quality--its conception of the individual as essentially the proprietor of his own person or capacities, owing nothing to society for them. Under such a conception, the essence of humanity becomes freedom from dependence on the
wills of others; society is little more than a system of economic relations; and political society becomes a means of safeguarding private property and the system of economic relations rooted in property. As the New Statesman declared: It is rare for a book to change the intellectual landscape. It is even more unusual for this to happen when the subject is one that has been thoroughly investigated by generations of historians. . . Until the appearance of Professor Macpherson's book, it seemed
unlikely that anything radically new could be said about so well-worn a topic. The unexpected has happened, and the shock waves are still being absorbed. A new introduction by Frank Cunningham puts the work in a twenty-first-century context.
underpins classical liberalism lies in what he calls its possessive quality--its conception of the individual as essentially the proprietor of his own person or capacities, owing nothing to society for them. Under such a conception, the essence of humanity becomes freedom from dependence on the
wills of others; society is little more than a system of economic relations; and political society becomes a means of safeguarding private property and the system of economic relations rooted in property. As the New Statesman declared: It is rare for a book to change the intellectual landscape. It is even more unusual for this to happen when the subject is one that has been thoroughly investigated by generations of historians. . . Until the appearance of Professor Macpherson's book, it seemed
unlikely that anything radically new could be said about so well-worn a topic. The unexpected has happened, and the shock waves are still being absorbed. A new introduction by Frank Cunningham puts the work in a twenty-first-century context.
Languages:EnglishPublisher:Oxford University Press CanadaISBN-13:9780195444018ISBN-10:195444019UPC:9780195444018Book Category:Political Science, PhilosophyBook Subcategory:History & Theory, PoliticalSize:7.90 x 5.20 x 0.60 inchesWeight:0.55Product ID:SC11PPK4MZ
C.B. Macpherson (1911-1987) was Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. Widely regarded as Canada's pre-eminent political theorist of the twentieth century, he was the author of numerous books, including The Life and Times of Liberal Democracy and The Real World of Democracy, and was named to the Order of Canada, the country's highest civilian honor.
Publisher: Oxford University Press Canada
Contributor(s)
Author
Free shipping on orders over $75. Standard shipping takes 3-7 business days. Eligible items may be returned within 30 days of delivery. Conditions apply.