History and Illusion in Politics

Raymond Geuss is Lecturer in Philosophy at the University of Cambridge. He has taught widely in Germany and the United States, and has been an editor of the series of Cambridge Texts in the History of Political Thought since its inception. His previous books include The Idea of a Critical Theory (Cambridge, 1981, ISBN 0521 284228), Morality, Culture, and History (Cambridge, 1999, ISBN 0 521 635683), and Public Goods, Private Goods (Princeton, 2001). He has also published a collection of classical verse in his own English translations, Parrots, Poets, and Philosophers & Good Advice (London, 1999).

• Preface; Introduction; Part I. The State: 1.1 Political associations; 1.2 Violence, coercion, and power; 1.3 The concept of the state; 1.4 The concept of legitimacy; 1.5 Authority; 1.6 Weber's 'modern' state; 1.7 History and the concept of the state; 1.8 Anarchy and the state; 1.9 The legitimacy of the state; Part II. Liberalism: 2.1 The context; 2.2 Toleration; 2.3 Freedom; 2.4 Individualism; 2.5 Limited, unlimited, and discretionary power; Part III. Democracy and Rights: 3.1 Democracy: description and interpretation; 3.2 Democracy: evaluation; 3.3 Popular control and the state; 3.4 Legal rights; 3.5 Human rights; 3.6 Rights and politics; 4. Conclusion; Index.

"...impressive..." Ethics