Hobbes: On the Citizen by Thomas Hobbes
De Cive (On the Citizen) is the first full exposition of the political thought of Thomas Hobbes, the greatest English political philosopher of all time. Professors Tuck and Silverthorne have undertaken the first complete translation since 1651, a rendition long thought (in error) to be at least sanctioned by Hobbes himself. On the Citizen is written in a clear, straightforward, expository style, and in many ways offers students a more digestible account of Hobbes's political thought than the Leviathan itself. This new translation is both accurate and accessible, and is itself a significant scholarly event: it is accompanied by a full glossary of Latin terms, a chronology, bibliography, and an expository introduction. Throughout the editors have emphasised consistency in the translation and usage of Hobbes's basic conceptual vocabulary, respecting Hobbes's own concern for accurate definition of terms.
'Tuck's introduction is characteristically fresh and supple, with an enviable range of reference and an expository ease and vividness that bring out the excitement and importance of Hobbes's work splendidly … De Cive is one of the most valuable of all the Cambridge texts in the History of Political ThoughtIt packs in a remarkable amount of practical help to the reader without a hint of condescension. There could hardly be a better place to begin to grapple with the least comfortably dead of all the great political philosophers.' The Times Higher
THOMAS HOBBES was born the son of a cleric on April 5, 1588, in the town of Malmesbury in the county of Wiltshire, England. He was schooled in the Scholastic tradition at Oxford, and from the time he received his bachelor of arts degree in 1607, Hobbes served as a private tutor to various wealthy nobles in England and France. This career offered him access to well-stocked libraries and provided the opportunity to travel throughout Europe. During the next forty years, Hobbes would meet such famous people as Galileo, Descartes, and Gassendi, whose ideas were to influence him greatly. In 1640, during one of the many periods of political turmoil he was to witness, Hobbes wrote a short work on the Elements of Law, Natural and Politique, which supported absolute monarchy. When the political tide turned in favor of the anti-royalists, Hobbes escaped to Paris. While there, he was to write De cive in 1642, a work that expanded his political theory. When Civil War broke out in England, Hobbes sought to bring his political philosophy to the English audience with the publication of Leviathan in 1651. This work was to be his most powerful restatement of absolute government grounded on a compact between the ruled and a sovereign authority that would protect the citizenry and secure peace. Since his political philosophy supported neither the divine right of a monarchy based upon succession nor the independent authority of the church, Hobbes was viewed with suspicion by both royalists and the ecclesiastical community. Hobbes returned to England in 1651, after an eleven-year exile, and took up residence in London. After the Restoration in 1658, he lived on a modest pension from King Charles II and continued to write. In 1668 he wrote Behemoth, a history of the Civil War, but it was suppressed in manuscript until 1682 when it was published posthumously. Having borne the brunt of political in-fighting for many years, Hobbes finally retired to the town of Hardwick, where he died on December 4, 1679, at the age of 91.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780521437806 |
| ISBN 10 | 0521437806 |
| Title | Hobbes: On the Citizen |
| Author | Thomas Hobbes |
| Series | Cambridge Texts In The History Of Political Thought |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press |
| Year published | 1998-08-20 |
| Number of pages | 306 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |