Early Modern Philosophy: Essential Readings with Commentary

Part of the Blackwell Readings in the History of Philosophy series, this survey of early modern philosophy focuses on the key texts and philosophers of the period whose beliefs changed the course of western thought.

• Assembles the key texts from the most significant and influential philosophers of the early modern era to provide a thorough introduction to the period.
• Features the writings of the major philosophical, scientific, and political thinkers of the time, including Descartes, Hobbes, Leibniz and Spinoza.
• Focuses on the development and growth of Rationalism which stressed reason, logic, and experimentation in the pursuit of truth.
• Readings are accompanied by expert commentary from the editors, who are leading scholars in the field.

A. P. Martinich is the Roy Allison Vaughan Centennial Professor of Philosophy and Professor of History and Government at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author or editor of many books, including Hobbes (2005), Philosophical Writing (3rd edn., 2005), and The Philosophy of Language (5th edn., 2007).

Fritz Allhoff is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Western Michigan University. His main areas of research are ethical theory, applied ethics, and the philosophy of biology/science. His work has been published in, among other places, the American Journal of Bioethics, the Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, History and Philosophy of the Life Sciences, the International Journal of Applied Philosophy, and the Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal.

Anand Jayprakash Vaidya is Assistant Professor of Philosophy at San José State University. His research is in metaphysics, epistemology, and philosophy of mind.