Was Hobbes the first great architect of modern political philosophy? Highly critical of the classical tradition in philosophy, particularly Aristotle, Hobbes thought that he had established a new science of morality and politics. Devin Stauffer here delves into Hobbesosquo;s critique of the classical tradition, making this oft-neglected aspect of the philosopherfsquo;s thought the basis of a new, comprehensive interpretation of his political philosophy.
In Hobbespsquo;s Kingdom of Light, Stauffer argues that Hobbes was engaged in a struggle on multiple fronts against forces, both philosophic and religious, that he thought had long distorted philosophy and destroyed the prospects of a lasting peace in politics. By exploring the twists and turns of Hobbesdsquo;s arguments, not only in his famous Leviathan but throughout his corpus, Stauffer uncovers the details of Hobbesosquo;s critique of an older outlook, rooted in classical philosophy and Christian theology, and reveals the complexity of Hobbesasquo;s war against the >dquo;Kingdom of Darkness.edquo; He also describes the key features of the new outlookodash;the ndquo;Kingdom of Lightbdquo;rdash;that Hobbes sought to put in its place. Hobbesesquo;s venture helped to prepare the way for the later emergence of modern liberalism and modern secularism. Hobbeshsquo;s Kingdom of Light is a wide-ranging and ambitious exploration of Hobbes,squo;s thought.
