Leo Strauss and the Recovery of Medieval Political Philosophy (Rochester Studies in Medieval Political Thought) (Volume 1) - Hardcover

Parens, Joshua

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1580465536 ISBN 13: 9781580465533

Publisher: University of Rochester Press, 2016

Synopsis

Leo Strauss is known primarily for reviving classical political philosophy. Strauss recovered that great tradition of thought largely lost to the West by beginning his study of classical thought with its teaching on politics rather than its metaphysics. What brought Strauss to this way of reading the classics, however, was a discovery he made as a young political scientist studying the obscure texts of Islamic and Jewish medieval political thought.

In this volume, Joshua Parens examines Strauss's investigations of medieval political philosophy, offering interpretations of his writings on the great thinkers of that tradition, including interpretations of his most difficult writings on Alfarabi and Maimonides. In addition Parens explicates Strauss's statements on Christian medieval thought and his argument for rejecting the Scholastic paradigm as a method for interpreting Islamic and Jewish thought. Contrasting Scholasticism with Islamic and Jewish medieval political philosophy, Parens clarifies the theme of Strauss's thought, what Strauss calls the "theologico-political problem," and reveals the significance of medieval political philosophy in the Western tradition.

About this title

About the Author

Joshua Parens is professor of philosophy and politics and dean of the Braniff Graduate School at the University of Dallas.

Review

Joshua Parens presents a clear, highly readable account of how Leo Strauss approached the major themes of medieval Islamic and Jewish philosophy as set forth in the writings of Alfarabi and Maimonides. He shows the pertinence of Strauss's investigations for questions of importance to human beings today, when Strauss was writing, and when the authors first addressed them. --Charles Butterworth, University of Maryland

Joshua Parens has written an important and useful work for the study of both the Straussian project and political philosophy more broadly. Parens explains here the meaning of Strauss's difficult writings on medieval political philosophy and shows how his study of this tradition enabled him to rediscover the enduring character of political philosophy. --Steven Frankel, Xavier University

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Rochester Press
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1580465536
• ISBN 13: 9781580465533
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 208