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Description of  Leo Strauss' Published but Uncollected English Writings

1587314614 epub Any presentation of political philosophy in the 20th century is radically incomplete without Leo Strauss. The appearance of this collection is particularly important given the relentless but shifting interest in his influence and thought in recent years. Lenzner and Minkov contend that in order to evaluate Strausss achievement properly, one must do so chiefly with reference to the works by which Strauss sought to establish his legacyi.e., those he chose to submit for the consideration of future readers. The most complete record of Strauss's thought includes his books together with his other published and unpublished writings and lectures. The achievement of this volume is to present in one collection every piece Strauss chose to publish in English that he did not himself include in a collection or a book. The material is arranged chronologically so as to avoid undue categorization by the editors. Among the highlights of these works published between 1937 and 1972 are striking formulations not to be found in his books on the relationship between philosophy and society, which is perhaps the most prominent theme in Strausss corpus taken as a whole rare personal statements that shed light on his self-understanding as a philosopher his first writing devoted solely to a classical thinker (The Spirit of Sparta or the Taste of Xenophon) his first piece devoted to Plato, On a New Interpretation of Platos Political Philosophy, his most searching engagement with Jean-Jacques Rousseau his first treatment of the thought of Niccol Machiavelli and a wonderful, later treatment of Machiavellis relation to ancient writers and a critical review of a book on Xenophons Read more