Hobbes

First published in 1904, this biography of Thomas Hobbes examines his life, his philosophy and the tumultuous times he lived in.

Leslie Stephen (Author)

9781108047654, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 2 August 2012

256 pages
21.6 x 14 x 1.5 cm, 0.33 kg

At the age of eighty-four, Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) wrote an autobiography in Latin elegaics. Unsurprisingly, it was not as widely read as his two great philosophical works, Leviathan and Behemoth, in which he laid out a set of sociopolitical theories that enraged many of the philosophers and moralists of Europe. In this comprehensive biography, first published in 1904, Sir Leslie Stephen (1832–1904) charts the character and changes of Hobbes' thinking, from the scholasticism of his early Oxford education, to his later devotion to geometry and deductive science. With an emphasis on personal influences, Stephen sets Hobbes and his work in the historical context of Hobbes' often difficult patrons, the Civil War, and the Restoration, providing an insight into the life of the eminent philosopher and into the tenets of early twentieth-century biographical writing. An interesting text for students of both philosophy and English literature.

1. The life
2. The world
3. Man
4. The state
Index.

Subject Areas: Western philosophy: c 1600 to c 1900 [HPCD]