Authority relationships in American classrooms are mirror images of authority relationships in the larger society. These patterns originally developed out of the Western liberal tradition where parental authority and authority of counsel (or wisdom) evolved into authority by force and bureaucracy. In either case the result was politically and…

Philosophical works and sociological writings from the seventeenth through the twentieth century are analyzed in this paper to learn the degree to which their use of generics (linguistic terms such as "mankind" that are used to refer to all humans) can be said to have actual reference to all adults without consideration of sex. The paper notes…

The connection between liberal political philosophy and political education is discussed with particular emphasis on the philosophy of Thomas Hobbes. The purpose of the essay is to explain how liberal citizens become committed to a distinctively liberal conception of the common good. Part 1 discusses Hobbes' theory that rationally determining…

The purpose of this module for college students is to describe the economic, social, intellectual, and political changes which took place during the Enlightenment period and to show the interrelationship between these changes and concepts behind due process of law. This resource contains an introduction to the module; a list of objectives for the…

The meaning and understanding of conscience in political thought are examined. The problem of distinguishing apparent and real conscience and private and public judgment is illustrated by contrasting the acts of conscience of Socrates and Thomas More with the rejection of private judgment against the state in Hobbes and Locke. (RM)

Eighteenth century Scottish philosopher Thomas Reid's emphasis on first principles of knowledge is fundamental to his ethics of rhetoric. Reid found the reduction of mental activities to material phenomena by Hobbes and others to be particularly odious and destructive of common sense. Turning to the analysis of human nature, he developed a radical…

Refutes the claims of Allan Bloom that the source of the problem with today's universities is modern philosophy, that the writings and ideas of Hobbes and Locke planted the seeds of relativism in American culture, and that the cure is Great Books education. Suggests instead that America's founding principles are the only solution to the failure of…