Mind and Political Concepts

Mind and Political Concepts offers a descriptive account of the conceptual mind as applied to political philosophy. In an attempt to find the common feature characterizing the conceptual method in political philosophy, this book examines three classical works: Plato's Republic, Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau's Social Contract. It argues that political philosophy can also contribute something to philosophical psychology. This book is comprised of six chapters and begins by tracing the origins of the conceptual method to Plato's general philosophical method. In particular, Plato's views on concepts such as justice, human behavior, and political order in Republic are discussed. The reader is then introduced to Hobbes' Leviathan and his role in the advent of the scientific conceptual method; Rousseau's Social Contract and his analysis of human nature and the state; the structure of a political theory; and the link between the philosophy of mind and psychology. The last chapter considers some modern political theories and shows that, however different their methods and their programs, their notion of the philosopher's participation in political life was dependent on their concept of reason. This monograph will appeal to students and practitioners of philosophy, politics, and psychology.