Frederick G. Whelan - Political Thought of Hume and his Contemporaries: Enlightenment Projects Vol. 1

Intended for scholars in the fields of political theory, and the history of political thought, this two-volume work examines David Humes political thought (171176) and that of his contemporaries, including Smith, Blackstone, Burke, and Robertson. This book is unified by its temporal focus on the middle and later decades of the eighteenth century and hence on what is usually taken to be the core period of the Enlightenment, a somewhat problematic term.

Covering topics such as property, contract and resistance theory, religious establishments, the law of nations, the balance of power, demography, and the role of unintended consequences in social life, Frederick G. Whelan convincingly conveys the diversityand creativityof the intellectual engagements of even a limited set of Enlightenment thinkers in contrast to dismissive attitudes, in some quarters, toward the Enlightenment and its supposed unitary project.

The Political Thought of Hume and His Contemporaries: Enlightenment Projects Vol. 1 contains six in-depth studies of issues in eighteenth-century political thought, with an emphasis on topics in normative theory such as property rights, the social contract, resistance to oppressive government, and religious liberty. The central figure is David Hume, with substantial attention to Edmund Burke, Adam Smith, and others in the period. The introduction situates the studies in the Enlightenment and considers interpretations of that movement.

The Political Thought of Hume and His Contemporaries: Enlightenment Projects Vol. 2 contains six in-depth studies of eighteenth-century political thought, including both normative issues and examples of Enlightenment social science, including international relations and law, the problem of double standards, political economy, demography, and the causes of imperial decline. The central figure is David Hume, with substantial attention to William Robertson, Adam Smith, Montesquieu, Malthus, and others.

Frederick G. Whelan is Professor of Political Science and Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Studies at the University of Pittsburgh. He is a leading scholar of Enlightenment political thought.

Routledge Studies in Social and Political Thought

For a full list of titles in this series, please visit www.routledge.com

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95 The Political Thought of Hume and His Contemporaries
Enlightenment Projects Vol 1
Frederick G. Whelan

Enlightenment Projects Volume 1

Frederick G. Whelan

First published 2015
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Whelan, Frederick G., 1947

Political thought of Hume and his contemporaries: Enlightenment projects / Frederick G. Whelan.

volumes cm. (Routledge studies in social and political thought)

1. Hume, David, 17111776. 2. Political scienceHistory18th century. 3. Enlightenment. I. Title.

JC176.H9W473 2014
320.09'033dc23
2014029634

ISBN: 978-1-138-82161-3 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-74320-2 (ebk)

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