30位政治思想家帶你審視政治初衷
難道我們真的無法脫離政治、經濟與宗教信仰而活嗎?我們應該自己住在小小的城邦就好、或是該集結成一個國家並與各國交流呢?我們該崇尚什麼樣的價值理念?財富應該歸屬於個人還是國家政府?動物也該有屬於他們的權利嗎?從古至今,政治思想家拋出了多少懸而未解的大哉問,又為這些大哉問拋出了千百個解答,本書鎖定30位政治思想家── Confucius孔子;Plato柏拉圖; Augustine奧古斯丁;Machiavelli馬基維利;Edmund Burke埃德蒙·伯克;Wollstonecraft瑪麗·沃史東克拉夫特;Marx馬克思;Nietzsche尼采;Gandhi甘地;Qutb賽義德·庫特布;Arendt漢娜‧鄂蘭;Nussbaum瑪莎·納斯邦;Rawls約翰·羅爾斯──對這些思想家們來說,才沒有所謂太異想天開或激進的概念,有的都是對社會深刻嚴肅的觀察提問,與尋找答案與解方!
如果你還不認識他們,不用擔心,本書每個章節都會生動地介紹這些思想家,讓你了解他們如何在備受波瀾的生活中體悟出他們的學說,而這些學說又是如何持續深化與完善,形塑了我們今日生活的世界。
在這個政黨對立、充斥假新聞、衝突與紛亂不休的年代,我們更應理解,政治是如何運作,透過回顧這30為思想家及他們竭盡心力思考的問題──人如何與彼此相處、與社會及政治權力共存──認識政治世界的緣起與發展。喚醒我們,政治是一門值得尊敬、讓人充滿啟發的人文思想技藝。而縱使我們不想花費心力,政治也永遠與我們的生活緊密相繫。(文/博客來編譯)
"A wonderful introduction to history''s most influential scribblers."--Steven Pinker
What is truly at stake in politics? Nothing less than how we should live, as individuals and as communities. This book goes beyond the surface headlines, the fake news and the hysteria to explore the timeless questions posed and answers offered by a diverse group of the 30 greatest political thinkers who have ever lived.
Are we political, economic, or religious animals? Should we live in small city-states, nations, or multinational empires? What values should politics promote? Should wealth be owned privately or in common? Do animals also have rights? There is no idea too radical for this global assortment of thinkers, which includes: Confucius; Plato; Augustine; Machiavelli; Burke; Wollstonecraft; Marx; Nietzsche; Gandhi; Qutb; Arendt; Nussbaum, Naess and Rawls.
In each brief chapter, the authors paint a vivid portrait of these often prescient, always compelling political thinkers, showing how their ideas grew out of their own dramatic lives and times and evolved beyond them. Now more than ever we need to be reminded that politics can be a noble, inspiring and civilising art. And if we want to understand today''s political world, we need to understand the foundations of politics and its architects. This is the perfect guide to both.