Augustine and the Limits of Politics - Paperback

Augustine and the Limits of Politics - Paperback

SKU: 9780268020019 In Stock
Regular price$42.28

by Jean Bethke Elshtain (Author), Patrick J. Deneen (Foreword by)

Now with a new foreword by Patrick J. Deneen.

Jean Bethke Elshtain brings Augustine's thought into the contemporary political arena and presents an Augustine who created a complex moral map that offers space for loyalty, love, and care, as well as a chastened form of civic virtue. The result is a controversial book about one of the world's greatest and most complex thinkers whose thought continues to haunt all of Western political philosophy. What is our business "within this common mortal life?" Augustine asks and bids us to ask ourselves. What can Augustine possibly have to say about the conditions that characterize our contemporary society and appear to put democracy in crisis? Who is Augustine for us now and what do his words have to do with political theory? These are the underlying questions that animate Jean Bethke Elshtain's fascinating engagement with the thought and work of Augustine, the ancient thinker who gave no political theory per se and refused to offer up a positive utopia. In exploring the questions, Why Augustine, why now?

Elshtain argues that Augustine's great works display a canny and scrupulous attunement to the here and now and the very real limits therein. She discusses other aspects of Augustine's thought as well, including his insistence that no human city can be modeled on the heavenly city, and further elaborates on Hannah Arendt's deep indebtedness to Augustine's understanding of evil. Elshtain also presents Augustine's arguments against the pridefulness of philosophy, thereby linking him to later currents in modern thought, including Wittgenstein and Freud.

Back Jacket

What is our business "within this common mortal life?" Augustine asks and bids us to ask ourselves. What can Augustine possibly have to say about the conditions that characterize our contemporary society and appear to put democracy in crisis? Who is Augustine for us now and what do his words have to do with political theory? These are the underlying questions that animate Jean Bethke Elshtain's fascinating engagement with the thought and work of Augustine, the ancient thinker who gave no political theory per se and refused to offer up a positive utopia. In exploring the questions, Why Augustine? Why now? Elshtain brings Augustine's thought into the contemporary political arena and presents an Augustine who created a complex moral map that offers space for loyalty, love, and care, as well as a chastened form of civic virtue. The result is a controversial book about one of the world's greatest and more complex thinkers, one whose thought continues to haunt all of Western political philosophy.

Author Biography

Jean Bethke Elshtain (1941-2013) was one of the nation's most prominent and provocative thinkers on religion, political philosophy, and ethics. She was the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Professor of Social and Political Ethics in the Divinity School, Political Science, and the Committee on International Relations at the University of Chicago. She was the author of numerous books, including Sovereignty: God, State, and Self.

Patrick J. Deneen holds the David A. Potenziani Memorial College Chair in the Department of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame.

Number of Pages: 174
Dimensions: 0.6 x 8.3 x 5.4 IN
Publication Date: April 30, 2018
Quantity
Add to wishlist
Add to compare
Delivery time: 2-7 business days
Free 30 days return
Payment Options

Help

If you have any questions, you are always welcome to contact us. We'll get back to you as soon as possible, withing 24 hours on weekdays.

Customer service

All questions about your order, return and delivery must be sent to our customer service team by e-mail at yourstore@yourdomain.com

Sale & Press

If you are interested in selling our products, need more information about our brand or wish to make a collaboration, please contact us at press@yourdomain.com

by Jean Bethke Elshtain (Author), Patrick J. Deneen (Foreword by)

Now with a new foreword by Patrick J. Deneen.

Jean Bethke Elshtain brings Augustine's thought into the contemporary political arena and presents an Augustine who created a complex moral map that offers space for loyalty, love, and care, as well as a chastened form of civic virtue. The result is a controversial book about one of the world's greatest and most complex thinkers whose thought continues to haunt all of Western political philosophy. What is our business "within this common mortal life?" Augustine asks and bids us to ask ourselves. What can Augustine possibly have to say about the conditions that characterize our contemporary society and appear to put democracy in crisis? Who is Augustine for us now and what do his words have to do with political theory? These are the underlying questions that animate Jean Bethke Elshtain's fascinating engagement with the thought and work of Augustine, the ancient thinker who gave no political theory per se and refused to offer up a positive utopia. In exploring the questions, Why Augustine, why now?

Elshtain argues that Augustine's great works display a canny and scrupulous attunement to the here and now and the very real limits therein. She discusses other aspects of Augustine's thought as well, including his insistence that no human city can be modeled on the heavenly city, and further elaborates on Hannah Arendt's deep indebtedness to Augustine's understanding of evil. Elshtain also presents Augustine's arguments against the pridefulness of philosophy, thereby linking him to later currents in modern thought, including Wittgenstein and Freud.

Back Jacket

What is our business "within this common mortal life?" Augustine asks and bids us to ask ourselves. What can Augustine possibly have to say about the conditions that characterize our contemporary society and appear to put democracy in crisis? Who is Augustine for us now and what do his words have to do with political theory? These are the underlying questions that animate Jean Bethke Elshtain's fascinating engagement with the thought and work of Augustine, the ancient thinker who gave no political theory per se and refused to offer up a positive utopia. In exploring the questions, Why Augustine? Why now? Elshtain brings Augustine's thought into the contemporary political arena and presents an Augustine who created a complex moral map that offers space for loyalty, love, and care, as well as a chastened form of civic virtue. The result is a controversial book about one of the world's greatest and more complex thinkers, one whose thought continues to haunt all of Western political philosophy.

Author Biography

Jean Bethke Elshtain (1941-2013) was one of the nation's most prominent and provocative thinkers on religion, political philosophy, and ethics. She was the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Professor of Social and Political Ethics in the Divinity School, Political Science, and the Committee on International Relations at the University of Chicago. She was the author of numerous books, including Sovereignty: God, State, and Self.

Patrick J. Deneen holds the David A. Potenziani Memorial College Chair in the Department of Political Science at the University of Notre Dame.

Number of Pages: 174
Dimensions: 0.6 x 8.3 x 5.4 IN
Publication Date: April 30, 2018

Shipping & Returns

Shipping
We deliver your parcel within 2–3 working days. As soon as your package has left our warehouse, you will receive a confirmation by email. This confirmation contains a tracking number that you can use to find out where your package is.

Returns
We offer free returns within 30 days. All you have to do is fill out the return slip that you received in your package and stick the prepaid label on the package.Please note that it can take 2 weeks for us to process your return. We will do our best to complete this process as soon as possible.

Shipping & Returns

Shipping
We deliver your parcel within 2–3 working days. As soon as your package has left our warehouse, you will receive a confirmation by email. This confirmation contains a tracking number that you can use to find out where your package is.

Returns
We offer free returns within 30 days. All you have to do is fill out the return slip that you received in your package and stick the prepaid label on the package.Please note that it can take 2 weeks for us to process your return. We will do our best to complete this process as soon as possible.

Warranty

We provide a 2-year limited warranty, from the date of purchase for all our products.

If you believe you have received a defective product, or are experiencing any problems with your product, please contact us.

This warranty strictly does not cover damages that arose from negligence, misuse, wear and tear, or not in accordance with product instructions (dropping the product, etc.).

Warranty

We provide a 2-year limited warranty, from the date of purchase for all our products.

If you believe you have received a defective product, or are experiencing any problems with your product, please contact us.

This warranty strictly does not cover damages that arose from negligence, misuse, wear and tear, or not in accordance with product instructions (dropping the product, etc.).

Secure Payment

Your payment information is processed securely. We do not store credit card details nor have access to your credit card information.

We accept payments with :
Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Paypal, Diners Club, Discover and more.

Secure Payment

Your payment information is processed securely. We do not store credit card details nor have access to your credit card information.

We accept payments with :
Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Paypal, Diners Club, Discover and more.

Related Products

You may also like