Mortal Gods

Science, Politics, and the Humanist Ambitions of Thomas Hobbes

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Humanism, Political
Cover of the book Mortal Gods by Ted H. Miller, Penn State University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Ted H. Miller ISBN: 9780271068237
Publisher: Penn State University Press Publication: December 12, 2011
Imprint: Penn State University Press Language: English
Author: Ted H. Miller
ISBN: 9780271068237
Publisher: Penn State University Press
Publication: December 12, 2011
Imprint: Penn State University Press
Language: English

According to the commonly accepted view, Thomas Hobbes began his intellectual career as a humanist, but his discovery, in midlife, of the wonders of geometry initiated a critical transition from humanism to the scientific study of politics. In Mortal Gods, Ted Miller radically revises this view, arguing that Hobbes never ceased to be a humanist. While previous scholars have made the case for Hobbes as humanist by looking to his use of rhetoric, Miller rejects the humanism/mathematics dichotomy altogether and shows us the humanist face of Hobbes’s affinity for mathematical learning and practice. He thus reconnects Hobbes with the humanists who admired and cultivated mathematical learning—and with the material fruits of Great Britain’s mathematical practitioners. The result is a fundamental recasting of Hobbes’s project, a recontextualization of his thought within early modern humanist pedagogy and the court culture of the Stuart regimes. Mortal Gods stands as a new challenge to contemporary political theory and its settled narratives concerning politics, rationality, and violence.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

According to the commonly accepted view, Thomas Hobbes began his intellectual career as a humanist, but his discovery, in midlife, of the wonders of geometry initiated a critical transition from humanism to the scientific study of politics. In Mortal Gods, Ted Miller radically revises this view, arguing that Hobbes never ceased to be a humanist. While previous scholars have made the case for Hobbes as humanist by looking to his use of rhetoric, Miller rejects the humanism/mathematics dichotomy altogether and shows us the humanist face of Hobbes’s affinity for mathematical learning and practice. He thus reconnects Hobbes with the humanists who admired and cultivated mathematical learning—and with the material fruits of Great Britain’s mathematical practitioners. The result is a fundamental recasting of Hobbes’s project, a recontextualization of his thought within early modern humanist pedagogy and the court culture of the Stuart regimes. Mortal Gods stands as a new challenge to contemporary political theory and its settled narratives concerning politics, rationality, and violence.

More books from Penn State University Press

Cover of the book The Complete Plays of Jean Racine by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Oppression and Responsibility by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Seditious Allegories by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Graphic Reproduction by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Textuality and Knowledge by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Rethinking Humanitarian Intervention by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book From Apartheid to Democracy by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Conscience and Community by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Raphael’s Ostrich by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Human Rights and Memory by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Rewriting Womanhood by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Shakespearean Tragedy and Its Double by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Editing the Soul by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book The Tempietto del Clitunno near Spoleto by Ted H. Miller
Cover of the book Tax Evasion and the Rule of Law in Latin America by Ted H. Miller
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy