A Student's Guide to Political Philosophy Quotes

“Political philosophy reaches for the best regime, a regime so good that it can hardly exist. Political science advances a theory—in fact, a number of theories—that promises to bring agreement and put an end to partisan dispute.”
― Harvey Mansfield, A Student's Guide to Political Philosophy

“Political philosophy is found in great books--those by Plato, Aristotle, Locke, Rousseau and others of the highest rank--and in books by professors. You should spend much more time with the great authors than with the professors, and you should use the professors to help you understand the great authors; you should not allow yourself to be diverted or distracted from the great books by professors.”
― Harvey Mansfield, A Student's Guide to Political Philosophy: Political Theory Guide

“The choice of a political principle can and will be defended with reasons, but it cannot be secured with a proof sufficiently conclusive to end political debate.”
― Harvey Mansfield, A Student's Guide to Political Philosophy