Five Great Political Texts

Course Summary

A brief introduction to five famous texts in political philosophy:

• Plato, Republic (c. 380BC), an account of the ideal state, which will be ruled by philosophers.
• Aristotle, Politics (c. 330BC), in which he supports various arrangements and practices as ‘natural.’
• Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince (1513), in which he holds that the prince must learn ‘how not to be virtuous.’
• Thomas Hobbes, Leviathan (1651), in which he argues that a very powerful sovereign is needed to keep us out of the dreadful ‘state of nature.’
• Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels, The Communist Manifesto (1848), in which they maintain that many social evils will end when capitalism is overthrown by communism.

Notes will be sent by email, prior to each class.  No purchases are required. 

Dr Douglas Adeney lectured in philosophy for many years at Melbourne State College, then the University of Melbourne. Since 2011 he has greatly enjoyed teaching numerous CAE philosophy courses. A non-academic friend of his was once asked by his wife what Doug did for a living. On hearing that he was a philosopher, she said ‘Oooh, he must be very intelligent … Or is he just weird?’ Come and decide for yourself.