Debates in Contemporary Political Philosophy: An Anthology

by Derek Matravers (Editor), Jonathan Pike (Editor)

This textbook reflects the buoyant state of contemporary political philosophy, and the development of the subject in the past two decades. It includes seminal papers on fundamental philosophical issues such
the nature of social explanation
distributive justice
liberalism and communitarianism
citizenship and multiculturalism
nationalism
democracy
criminal justice.
A range of views is represented, demonstrating the richness of the philosophical contribution to some of the most contested areas of public policy and political decision making. Each section has an introduction by the editors that situates the papers in the ongoing debate. Further Reading sections feature at the end of each chapter.
Readings from the following thinkers are
Steven Lukes, Robert Nozick, John Rawls, Bhikhu Parekh, Antony Duff, G.A. Cohen, Derek Parfit, Roger Scruton, Michael Sandel, Alasdair MacIntrye.
Debates in Contemporary Political Philosophy will be a valuable resource for upper-level students interested in current thinking in this area.

Genres: Philosophy, Politics, Nonfiction

464 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Adrian Fanaca · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a lover of political philosophy, I give it 5 stars without hesitation. We learn about communitarianism versus liberalism debate from the 1980s, we learn about various interpretations of John Rawls' theory of justice as fairness, we learn about human rights, feminism, conservatism, any kind of political ideology of the latest decades and their most prominent advocates. It is a must read for anyone interested in the way humans relate to each other, and obviously believe in rational debate, analysis, and do not believe in mystical religions.

[Nick Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was required reading for the Open University Course A851 'Issues in Contemporary Social and Political Thought'. It is a good introduction into current thinking within political philosophy and really gets you thinking. As the subject matter is fairly difficult it is by no means an easy read but with requisite time and effort there is a big payoff. As I move onto the dissertation module I know that this book will continue to serve as a now familiar guide. An excellent book.