Philosophy

This anthology offers the key works of Locke, Berkeley, and Hume in their entirety or in substantial selections, along with a rich selection of associated texts by other leading thinkers of the period.

Werner S. Pluhar's masterful rendering of Kant's major work on religion is meticulously annotated and presented here with a selected bibliography, glossary, and generous index. Stephen R. Palmquist's engaging Introduction provides historical background, discusses Religion in the context of Kant's philosophical system, elucidates Kant's main arguments, and explores the implications and ongoing relevance of the work.

This substantially revised new edition of Rousseau: The Basic Political Writings features a brilliant new Introduction by David Wootton, a revision by Donald A. Cress of his own 1987 translation of Rousseau’s most important political writings, and the addition of Cress’ new translation of Rousseau's State of  War. New footnotes, headnotes, and a chronology by David Wootton provide expert guidance to first-time readers of the texts.

The Second Treatise is one of the most important political treatises ever written and one of the most far-reaching in its influence.

In his provocative 15-page introduction to this edition, the late eminent political theorist C. B. Macpherson examines Locke's arguments for limited, conditional government, private property, and right of revolution and suggests reasons for the appeal of these arguments in Locke's time and since.

"Macpherson provides for his readers a tightly written, meaty, and often invigorating critical assessment of Locke's argument.  In it one finds some of the best of Macpherson's now famous criticism of liberal-democratic government."
    —Gregory E. Pyrcz in Canadian Philosophical Review

“The availability of a paperback version of Boyle’s philosophical writings selected by M. A. Stewart will be a real service to teachers, students, and scholars with seventeenth-century interests. The editor has shown excellent judgment in bringing together many of the most important works and printing them, for the most part, in unabridged form. The texts have been edited responsibly with emphasis on readability. . . . Of special interest in connection with Locke and with the reception of Descarte’s Corpuscularianism, to students of the Scientific Revolution and of the history of mechanical philosophy, and to those interested in the relations among science, philosophy, and religion. In fact, given the imperfections in and unavailability of the eighteenth-century editions of Boyle’s works, this collection will benefit a wide variety of seventeenth-century scholars.”
    —Gary Hatfield, University of Pennsylvania

This volume offers two complementary works, unabridged, in modernized, annotated texts—the only available edition priced for classroom use. Grant and Tarcov provide a concise introduction, a note on the texts, and a select bibliography.

A complete translation in English of this modern text, with substantive apparatus to allow the student and serious reader to grapple in a meaningful way with this seminal text. The text includes ample footnotes, Spinoza's annotations, an interpretative essay, glossary and other indices.

"Professor Shirley has provided a translation which is fluent, eminently readable, and responsive to current research into Spinoza's thought. Where a particular passage is difficult or obscure, Shirley never attempts to interpose himself between the reader and Spinoza, nor to side with one or another competing school of interpretation. This makes his translation not just an ideal introduction for the reader new to Spinoza, but also a trustworthy source of insight for the more advanced reader."
     —Lee C. Rice, Marquette University

"This elegant volume has been produced to a very high standard, is easy to handle, affordably priced, and, most importantly, renders Spinoza accurately into clear and graceful English. It will undoubtedly become an indispensable tool for all serious readers of Spinoza. . . . The supporting editorial material of this volume—the work of Michael L. Morgan—is . . . judicious and reliable. His eight-page Introduction offers a succinct interpretive overview of Spinoza’s system that will be thought-provoking for specialists, while also basic enough to be accessible to novice Spinozists. Morgan also provides a very useful chronology of Spinoza’s life, a brief introduction to each work, and a light apparatus of footnotes."
      —Adam Sutcliffe, The Jewish Quarterly Review

"One problem in teaching Hegel’s Phenomenology of Spirit is the sheer size of the work, which makes it intractable within the time limits of the typical North American university semester course. The judicious instructor can use this pivotal Chapter Six of the book as a vehicle for summing up the themes that Hegel has been developing from the beginning, and for anticipating the conclusion to which they lead. Students are more likely to grasp the substance of the work by this method than by the usual practice of concentrating on the Preface and the first three Chapters. Most misunderstandings of Hegel are due to the limitations of precisely this practice. Chapter Six is a literary and philosophical masterpiece in its own right. I cannot think of any more perceptive synthetic view of the development of European culture than is contained here.”
     —George di Giovanni, McGill University

“Original and stimulating. . . . The four new chapters deserve close attention. . . . Readers will await further studies by Richard A. Watson all the more impatiently.”
    —Jean-Luc Marion, Archives de Philosophie

This edition of Leviathan is intended to provide the reader with a modestly abridged text that is straightforward and accessible, while preserving Hobbes' main lines of argument and of thought. It is meant for those who wish to focus primarily on the philosophical aspects of the work, apart from its stylish but often daunting early modern prose. The editors have updated language, style, punctuation, and grammar throughout. Very long, complicated sentences have been broken into two or more sentences for enhanced readability. In some instances, terms within a sentence are rearranged for enhanced clarity. Occasionally, an equivalent contemporary word is substituted for an archaic one. Ellipses indicate omissions of more than one sentence. Care has been taken to maintain the strength, nuance, and flavor of the work, especially of Hobbes' most difficult arguments. In addition, the volume offers a general Introduction and concise headnotes to each chapter. Annotation is geared to the student or novice reader. A glossary of key terms is also included, as well as an index.

A free author's Companion to The Essential Leviathan for students is available to download (PDFs) on the title support page here.

"Absolutely magnificent edition!  I will be using it in all my introductory courses. . . . I also will use it in my 16th and 17th-century History of Philosophy course. . . . Just a wonderful collection, great translations, good editorial additions as well.  Terrific selection!"
     —Abba Lessing, Professor of Philosophy, Lake Forest College

"The Government of Poland is the only finished work in which Rousseau himself dons the mantle of legislator, applying the principles of the Social Contract to the real world around him. Poland teaches us much about the mysterious art of the Social Contract's 'legislator,' how he transforms each individual into part of a larger whole. Only in . . . Poland do we find what this crucial transformation entails and what it presupposes. But probably the greatest lesson to be learned from . . . Poland concerns Rousseau's understanding of the proper relationship between theory and practice. . . . Time and again we see Rousseau advising the Poles to do things which are in gross violation of the strict principles of political right he had elaborated in the Social Contract."
     —Richard Myers in Canadian Journal of Political Science

"Especially valuable is the very scholarly Introduction and commentary. Probably no Spinoza scholars are more knowledgeable about the man, his times, and his philosophy; and they provide what I find to be really helpful guidance."
     —Paul Eisenberg, Indiana University

Includes a translator's introduction, introduction by Genevieve Rodis-Lewis, bibliography, and index.

Designed for graduate and advanced undergraduate courses in philosophy and political science, this edition features a glossary keyed to the primary occurrences of important terms in the text and provides insights into the concepts beyond the translation—an especially useful pedagogical device for students coming to Hegel for the first time. 

Through a collection of works from key thinkers in natural philosophy, the second edition of The Scientific Background to Modern Philosophy illuminates the central role scientific writing played in developing modern philosophical thought. This revised and expanded edition includes many new translations and incorporates works by foundational eighteenth- and nineteenth-century thinkers not in the first edition, including selections from works by Jean-Baptiste, le Rond d’Alembert, Denis Diderot, Émilie Du Châtelet, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Joseph Priestley, Immanuel Kant, Carl Linnaeus, William Paley, and Charles Robert Darwin. These new additions provide students with a more comprehensive understanding of the scientific context in which the major philosophical works of the modern era were written and complement the selections from works by Nicolaus Copernicus, Francis Bacon, Galileo Galilei, René Descartes, Robert Boyle, Christiaan Huygens, and Isaac Newton that are retained from the first edition.

The first edition of The Scientific Background to Modern Philosophy is out of print and has been replaced by a new 2nd edition (released in November 2022). Click here for more information about the new 2nd edition.

In late 1633, as Descartes was preparing The World and Man for publication, he learned that Galileo had been condemned by the Catholic Church for defending the motion of the earth. His reaction to the news was swift and powerful: as his own treatises also espoused the proposition deemed heretical, he canceled their publication. More than thirty years after Descartes had begun his project, these works were finally published, posthumously, both to acclaim and to controversy. Together, they profoundly influenced the course of modern philosophy.

“Samuel Shirley is undoubtedly the most significant translator of Spinoza’s writings into English.”
     —Douglas Den Uyl, Bellarmine College

“A very fine book on human nature, both what it is and what philosophers have thought about it—philosophers in an inclusive sense, from Plato and Aristotle to Mengzi and Xunzi, from Hume and Kant to Ibn al-Arabi to Marx and Rousseau and including many others. The writing is lively and accessible, the philosophy insightful, and the sense of human possibilities conveyed admirable. It will fit nicely into many different sorts of classes.”
     —John Perry, Stanford University

"A model of what an edition of a philosophic text for an introductory level should be.  Introduction does an admirable job of putting Berkeley's thought in the intellectual context of its time."  
     —Gary C. Hatfield

In this short essay, Kant completes his political theory and philosophy of history, considering the prospects for peace among nations and addressing questions that remain central to our thoughts about nationalism, war, and peace. Ted Humphrey provides an eminently readable translation, along with a brief introduction that sketches Kant’s argument.

Designed to serve the needs of students confronting Locke’s political thought for the first time, Lee Ward’s edition offers a faithful text of Two Treatises of Government with modernized spelling and punctuation. Its Editor’s Introduction outlines the main arguments of these works, illustrates the conceptual thread uniting the less frequently read First Treatise with the far more famous Second Treatise, and locates Locke’s work amid the turbulent constitutional battles of 1690s England. Helpful notes at the foot of the page, a Thematic Index, and an up-to-date Bibliography are also provided.

Immanuel  Kant’s  Groundwork  for  the  Metaphysics  of  Morals  is  widely  regarded  as  one of the most influential works in the history of moral philosophy. Indeed, any student of ethics will soon encounter a translation of the book, although trying to read it is likely to cause bewilderment. What, one may ask, is Kant trying to say? This book provides the answers. Here, seven highly regarded teachers and scholars of Kant’s ethics offer remarkably clear explanations of the most important concepts in  the  Groundwork:  the  good  will,  happiness,  duty,  hypothetical  and  categorical  imperatives, the Formula of Universal Law, the Formula of Humanity, and freedom.

“This is the rare guide to Kant’s Groundwork suitable even for students new to philosophy. The clear, concise chapters focus on only the most essential concepts from all three sections of the Groundwork. The authors expertly illuminate Kant’s ethical thought and facilitate engagement with the text.” —Lara Denis, Agnes Scott College

"Eggleston has produced easily the best edition of Utilitarianism available. By conveniently including so many of the relevant passages from supplementary works, all organized for ease of reference, scholars and students alike will now have at their fingertips the materials needed to make sense of Mill's classic text. This is important not just for an accurate understanding of Mill's own moral and political philosophy, but for a proper appreciation of utilitarianism as a leading moral tradition."  —Piers Norris Turner, Associate Professor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University

“This fluid new translation, with abundant explanatory notes and an insightful Introduction to Voltaire’s literary strategies, will make an excellent edition for students, as well as a useful resource for scholars.”
     —Ann Blair, Harvard University

"Has all the basic chapters for the illustration of all the various (and contradictory) points anyone might want to make about the text. Dickey's own texts are invaluable. The introductions to the chapters are essential to make clear to students where they fit in the overall argument of the book. The appendices, though clearly the expression of the author's own views about the text, are admirably objective in the treatment of competing views, and represent an important contribution to Smith scholarship."
      —J. W. Smit, Columbia University

“A very useful collection, welcome both for the intrinsic merit and historical significance of the ideas and arguments the volume contains, and for its pedagogical potential.”
    —Peter Loptson, Canadian Philosophical Reviews