Political Philosophy: Essential Selections

Rating:
Summary: Best political philosophy anthology available.
Review: This is the best collection of primary texts in the history of political philosophy available. Its coverage is strikingly broad: it has extended, well-chosen excerpts from virtually every important figure from the Ancient world through the Medieval, modern, and contemporary. Moreover, it contains excerpts from a broad range of perspectives, including the important but usually-overlooked anarchistic and libertarian traditions. Finally, its editorial matter is informative without being obtrusive. The editors merely situate the figure or text in historical context, and then let the readings speak for themselves--just as they should.

If one is looking for an anthology for an undergraduate-level political philosophy class, or if one merely wants to peruse what the most important voices have had to say, one could hardly do better than this collection.