Thomas Jefferson and Philosophy - by M Andrew Holowchak (Hardcover)

About the Book

Thomas Jefferson and Philosophy: Essays on the Philosophical Cast of Jefferson's Writings is a collection of essays on topics that relate to philosophical aspects of Jefferson's thinking over the years. Much historical insight is given to ground the various philosophical stran...

Book Synopsis

Though it is not uncommon for historians to have something to say concerning philosophical strands in Jefferson's thought, that something is usually insubstantial--often misleadingly so--or inchoate. Overall, precious little has been said. The significance of the man and the richness of his thought demands that this defect be remedied.

Thomas Jefferson and Philosophy is a collection of nine new essays on philosophical elements in Jefferson's writings. The first of its kind, this collection should lead to further philosophical analysis of Jefferson's thinking--especially by philosophers, who tend to appreciate Jefferson only as the author of the Declaration of Independence--and to greater appreciation for the man who gave to statesmanship a large number of the prime of his years out of a moral sense of duty to others. In that regard, Jefferson was always first a philosopher.

This book will be a valuable read for students and scholars of history, political theory, and philosophy, as well as anyone interested in the thought of Thomas Jefferson.

Review Quotes

"This impressive collection of essays offers a good introduction to the central questions of Jefferson scholarship, seeking genuinely to understand his thought rather than only to judge the man by the standards of our own time."

About the Author

M. Andrew Holowchak teaches philosophy at Rutgers University in Camden, New Jersey. His authored books include Dutiful Correspondent: Philosophical Essays on Thomas Jefferson and Freud and Utopia: From Cosmological Narcissism to the Soft Dictatorship of Reason.