The Truth About Leo Strauss

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The Truth about Leo Strauss

Author : Catherine H. Zuckert,Michael P. Zuckert
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 320 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2008-11-15
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780226993348

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The Truth about Leo Strauss by Catherine H. Zuckert,Michael P. Zuckert Pdf

Is Leo Strauss truly an intellectual forebear of neoconservatism and a powerful force in shaping Bush administration foreign policy? The Truth about Leo Strauss puts this question to rest, revealing for the first time how the popular media came to perpetuate such an oversimplified view of such a complex and wide-ranging philosopher. More important, it corrects our perception of Strauss, providing the best general introduction available to the political thought of this misunderstood figure. Catherine and Michael Zuckert—both former students of Strauss—guide readers here to a nuanced understanding of how Strauss’s political thought fits into his broader philosophy. Challenging the ideas that Strauss was an inflexible conservative who followed in the footsteps of Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Carl Schmitt, the Zuckerts contend that Strauss’s signature idea was the need for a return to the ancients. This idea, they show, stemmed from Strauss’s belief that modern thought, with its relativism and nihilism, undermines healthy politics and even the possibility of real philosophy. Identifying this view as one of Strauss’s three core propositions—America is modern, modernity is bad, and America is good—they conclude that Strauss was a sober defender of liberal democracy, aware of both its strengths and its weaknesses. The Zuckerts finish, appropriately, by examining the varied work of Strauss’s numerous students and followers, revealing the origins—rooted in the tensions within his own thought—oftheir split into opposing camps. Balanced and accessible, The Truth about Leo Strauss is a must-read for anyone who wants to more fully comprehend this enigmatic philosopher and his much-disputed legacy.

Leo Strauss and the Problem of Political Philosophy

Author : Michael P. Zuckert,Catherine H. Zuckert
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 400 pages
File Size : 47,6 Mb
Release : 2014-06-30
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780226135878

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Leo Strauss and the Problem of Political Philosophy by Michael P. Zuckert,Catherine H. Zuckert Pdf

This critical study of the influential political theorist dispels popular myths and reveals the inner logic of his varied and notoriously complex writings. Political theorist Leo Strauss was unexpectedly thrust into the media spotlight for his alleged influence on neoconservative politics. With The Truth about Leo Strauss, Michael and Catherine Zuckert challenged the many claims and speculations about this complex thinker. Now, with Leo Strauss and the Problem of Political Philosophy, they offer a more comprehensive interpretation of Strauss’s thought, using the many manifestations of the “problem of political philosophy” as their touchstone. Strauss, they argue, sought to restore political philosophy to its original Socratic form. This is demonstrated through his critique of positivism and historicism, two intellectual currents that undermined his Socratic project. The authors also explore Strauss’s interpretation of both ancient and modern political philosophers, including Plato, Aristotle, Machiavelli, and Locke. Finally, they examine Strauss’s thought in the context of the twentieth century, when his chief interlocutors were Schmitt, Husserl, Heidegger, and Nietzsche. Leo Strauss and the Problem of Political Philosophy is the most in-depth treatment of this often misunderstood thinker, examining his ideas across his long career. It reveals Strauss’s overall intellectual project: to decode how ancient and modern theory attempted to solve the problem of political philosophy. And it shows why Strauss considered the ancient solution both philosophically and politically superior.

Leo Strauss

Author : Robert Howse
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 201 pages
File Size : 48,9 Mb
Release : 2014-09-08
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781107074996

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Leo Strauss by Robert Howse Pdf

This book analyzes Leo Strauss's writings on political violence, considering also what he taught in the classroom on this subject.

Leo Strauss and the Politics of Exile

Author : Eugene Sheppard
Publisher : Brandeis University Press
Page : 209 pages
File Size : 43,8 Mb
Release : 2007-01-31
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781584656005

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Leo Strauss and the Politics of Exile by Eugene Sheppard Pdf

A probing study that demystifies the common portrayal of Leo Strauss as the inspiration for American neo-conservativism by tracing his philosophy to its German Jewish roots.

The Truth about Leo Strauss

Author : Michael Zuckert,Catherine
Publisher : ReadHowYouWant
Page : 676 pages
File Size : 48,5 Mb
Release : 2013-02
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 1459658434

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The Truth about Leo Strauss by Michael Zuckert,Catherine Pdf

Is Leo Strauss truly an intellectual forebear of neoconservatism and a powerful force in shaping Bush administration foreign policy? "The Truth about Leo Strauss" puts this question to rest, revealing for the first time how the popular media came to perpetuate such an oversimplified view of such a complex and wide - ranging philosopher. More important, it corrects our perception of Strauss, providing the best general introduction available to the political thought of this misunderstood figure. Catherine and Michael Zuckert - both former students of Strauss - guide readers here to a nuanced understanding of how Strauss's political thought fits into his broader philosophy. Challenging the ideas that Strauss was an inflexible conservative who followed in the footsteps of Nietzsche, Heidegger, and Carl Schmitt, the Zuckerts contend that Strauss's signature idea was the need for a return to the ancients. This idea, they show, stemmed from Strauss's belief that modern thought, with its relativism and nihilism, undermines healthy politics and even the possibility of real philosophy. Identifying this view as one of Strauss's three core propositions - America is modern, modernity is bad, and America is good - they conclude that Strauss was a sober defender of liberal democracy, aware of both its strengths and its weaknesses. The Zuckerts finish, appropriately, by examining the varied work of Strauss's numerous students and followers, revealing the origins - rooted in the tensions within his own thought - oftheir split into opposing camps. Balanced and accessible, "The Truth about Leo Strauss" is a must - read for anyone who wants to more fully comprehend this enigmatic philosopher and his much - disputed legacy.

Leo Strauss and Anglo-American Democracy

Author : Grant Havers
Publisher : Northern Illinois University Press
Page : 259 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2013-10-15
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9781501757228

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Leo Strauss and Anglo-American Democracy by Grant Havers Pdf

Leo Strauss and Anglo-American Democracy critically interprets Strauss's political philosophy from a conservative perspective. Most mainstream readers of Strauss have either condemned him from the Left as an extreme right-wing opponent of liberal democracy or celebrated him from the Right as a traditional defender of Western civilization. Rejecting both portrayals, Grant Havers shifts the debate beyond the conventional parameters stating that Strauss was neither a man of the Far Right nor a conservative but. in fact a secular Cold War liberal. In Leo Strauss and Anglo-American Democracy Havers contends that the most troubling implication of Straussianism is that it provides an ideological rationale for the aggressive spread of democratic values on a global basis while ignoring the preconditions that make these values possible. Concepts such as the rule of law, constitutional government, Christian morality, and the separation of church and state are not easily transplanted beyond the historic confines of Anglo-American civilization, as recent wars to spread democracy have demonstrated.

Natural Right and History

Author : Leo Strauss
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 337 pages
File Size : 40,5 Mb
Release : 2013-12-27
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9780226226453

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Natural Right and History by Leo Strauss Pdf

In this classic work, Leo Strauss examines the problem of natural right and argues that there is a firm foundation in reality for the distinction between right and wrong in ethics and politics. On the centenary of Strauss's birth, and the fiftieth anniversary of the Walgreen Lectures which spawned the work, Natural Right and History remains as controversial and essential as ever. "Strauss . . . makes a significant contribution towards an understanding of the intellectual crisis in which we find ourselves . . . [and] brings to his task an admirable scholarship and a brilliant, incisive mind."—John H. Hallowell, American Political Science Review Leo Strauss (1899-1973) was the Robert Maynard Hutchins Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in Political Science at the University of Chicago.

What is Political Philosophy? And Other Studies

Author : Leo Strauss
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 324 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 1988-10-15
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 0226777138

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What is Political Philosophy? And Other Studies by Leo Strauss Pdf

"All political action has . . . in itself a directedness towards knowledge of the good: of the good life, or of the good society. For the good society is the complete political good. If this directedness becomes explicit, if men make it their explicit goal to acquire knowledge of the good life and of the good society, political philosophy emerges. . . . The theme of political philosophy is mankind's great objectives, freedom and government or empire—objectives which are capable of lifting all men beyond their poor selves. Political philosophy is that branch of philosophy which is closest to political life, to non-philosophic life, to human life."—From "What Is Political Philosophy?" What Is Political Philosophy?—a collection of ten essays and lectures and sixteen book reviews written between 1943 and 1957—contains some of Leo Strauss's most famous writings and some of his most explicit statements of the themes that made him famous. The title essay records Strauss's sole extended articulation of the meaning of political philosophy itself. Other essays discuss the relation of political philosophy to history, give an account of the political philosophy of the non-Christian Middle Ages and of classic European modernity, and present his theory of esoteric writing.

Leo Strauss and Nietzsche

Author : Laurence Lampert
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 244 pages
File Size : 53,5 Mb
Release : 1996
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 0226468267

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Leo Strauss and Nietzsche by Laurence Lampert Pdf

For Lampert, Strauss's essay is equally important for understanding Strauss himself. Lampert's Strauss is a sympathetic admirer of Nietzsche and his teachings, who ultimately situates him in the company of Plato and elevates understanding the contest between Plato and Nietzsche into the highest task facing contemporary or postmodern philosophy. Why, then, should Strauss have kept this admiration hidden while permitting such a distorted public view of his thought? And why should he have discouraged others from appreciating the teachings that had proved so important to his own philosophical liberation and training? According to Lampert, the answers lie in Strauss's own esoteric writing, full of subtexts, implications, and consequences. Strauss conceived of philosophy as a furtive undertaking, and believed Nietzsche had rejected the necessity of this role for philosophy in favor of a daring candor.

The Enduring Importance of Leo Strauss

Author : Laurence Lampert
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 45,6 Mb
Release : 2013-08-14
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 022603948X

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The Enduring Importance of Leo Strauss by Laurence Lampert Pdf

The Enduring Importance of Leo Strauss takes on the crucial task of separating what is truly important in the work of Leo Strauss from the ephemeral politics associated with his school. Laurence Lampert focuses on exotericism: the use of artful rhetoric to simultaneously communicate a socially responsible message to the public at large and a more radical message of philosophic truth to a smaller, more intellectually inclined audience. Largely forgotten after the Enlightenment, exotericism, he shows, deeply informed Strauss both as a reader and as a philosophic writer—indeed, Lampert argues, Strauss learned from the finest practitioners of exoteric writing how to become one himself. Examining some of Strauss’s most important books and essays through this exoteric lens, Lampert reevaluates not only Strauss but the philosophers—from Plato to Halevi to Nietzsche—with whom Strauss most deeply engaged. Ultimately Lampert shows that Strauss’s famous distinction between ancient and modern thinkers is primarily rhetorical, one of the great examples of Strauss’s exoteric craft. Celebrating Strauss’s achievements while recognizing one main shortcoming—unlike Nietzsche, he failed to appreciate the ramifications of modern natural science for philosophy and its public presentation—Lampert illuminates Strauss as having even greater philosophic importance than we have thought before.

Leo Strauss and the Theologico-Political Problem

Author : Heinrich Meier
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 210 pages
File Size : 43,7 Mb
Release : 2006-12-25
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 0521699452

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Leo Strauss and the Theologico-Political Problem by Heinrich Meier Pdf

This book, by one of the most prominent interpreters of Leo Strauss's thought, was the first to address the problem that Leo Strauss himself said was the theme of his studies: the theologico-political problem or the confrontation with the theological and the political alternative to philosophy as a way of life. In his theologico-political treatise, which comprises four parts and an appendix, Heinrich Meier clarifies the distinction between political theology and political philosophy and reappraises the unifying center of Strauss's philosophical enterprise. The book is the culmination of Meier's work on the theologico-political problem. It will interest anyone who seeks to understand both the problem caused by revelation for philosophy and the challenge posed by political-religious radicalism. The appendix makes available for the first time two lectures by Strauss that are immediately relevant to the subject of this book and that will open the way for future research and debate on the legacy of Strauss.

Leo Strauss and the Rediscovery of Maimonides

Author : Kenneth Hart Green
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 218 pages
File Size : 49,7 Mb
Release : 2013-05-16
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780226307015

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Leo Strauss and the Rediscovery of Maimonides by Kenneth Hart Green Pdf

In Leo Strauss and the Rediscovery of Maimonides, Kenneth Hart Green explores the critical role played by Maimonides in shaping Leo Strauss’s thought. In uncovering the esoteric tradition employed in Maimonides’s Guide of the Perplexed, Strauss made the radical realization that other ancient and medieval philosophers might be concealing their true thoughts through literary artifice. Maimonides and al-Farabi, he saw, allowed their message to be altered by dogmatic considerations only to the extent required by moral and political imperatives and were in fact avid advocates for enlightenment. Strauss also revealed Maimonides’s potential relevance to contemporary concerns, especially his paradoxical conviction that one must confront the conflict between reason and revelation rather than resolve it. An invaluable companion to Green’s comprehensive collection of Strauss’s writings on Maimonides, this volume shows how Strauss confronted the commonly accepted approaches to the medieval philosopher, resulting in both a new understanding of Maimonides and a new depth and direction for his own thought. It will be welcomed by anyone engaged with the work of either philosopher.

Studies in Platonic Political Philosophy

Author : Leo Strauss
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
Page : 269 pages
File Size : 55,5 Mb
Release : 1983
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 9780226777009

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Studies in Platonic Political Philosophy by Leo Strauss Pdf

One of the outstanding thinkers of our time offers in this book his final words to posterity. Studies in Platonic Political Philosophy was well underway at the time of Leo Strauss's death in 1973. Having chosen the title for the book, he selected the most important writings of his later years and arranged them to clarify the issues in political philosophy that occupied his attention throughout his life. As his choice of title indicates, the heart of Strauss's work is Platonism—a Platonism that is altogether unorthodox and highly controversial. These essays consider, among others, Heidegger, Husserl, Nietzsche, Marx, Moses Maimonides, Machiavelli, and of course Plato himself to test the Platonic understanding of the conflict between philosophy and political society. Strauss argues that an awesome spritual impoverishment has engulfed modernity because of our dimming awareness of that conflict. Thomas Pangle's Introduction places the work within the context of the entire Straussian corpus and focuses especially on Strauss's late Socratic writings as a key to his mature thought. For those already familiar with Strauss, Pangle's essay will provoke thought and debate; for beginning readers of Strauss, it provides a fine introduction. A complete bibliography of Strauss's writings if included.

Crisis of the Strauss Divided

Author : Harry V. Jaffa
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Page : 291 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 2012-08-26
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 9781442217133

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Crisis of the Strauss Divided by Harry V. Jaffa Pdf

“Leo Strauss (1899-1973) was the greatest mind in political philosophy in the twentieth century, and possibly in other centuries as well. That, I am well aware, is a judgment I share with very few, if any.” So writes Harry V. Jaffa in his epilogue to this volume. Including an extensive unpublished essay entitled “Straussian Geography: A Memoir and Commentary,” Crisis of the Strauss Divided brings together a collection of Jaffa’s published arguments defending and explaining that judgment, written during the 40 years since Strauss’s death. The volume includes arguments of those who have disagreed with Jaffa about Strauss's teaching and about the nature of political philosophy. These wide ranging exchanges explore many of the great themes of political philosophy and, in particular, the implications of Strauss's thinking for America and modern civilization.

Leo Strauss and the Politics of American Empire

Author : Anne Norton
Publisher : Yale University Press
Page : 262 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2005-01-01
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 0300109733

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Leo Strauss and the Politics of American Empire by Anne Norton Pdf

This provocative book examines the teachings of political theorist Leo Strauss and the ways in which they have been appropriated, or misappropriated, by senior policymakers.