Political Realism in Apocalyptic Times

From climate change to nuclear war to the rise of demagogic populists, our world is shaped by doomsday expectations. In this path-breaking book, Alison McQueen shows why three of history's greatest political realists feared apocalyptic politics. Niccol Machiavelli in the midst of Italy's vicious power struggles, Thomas Hobbes during England's bloody civil war, and Hans Morgenthau at the dawn of the thermonuclear age all saw the temptation to prophesy the end of days. Each engaged in subtle and surprising strategies to oppose apocalypticism, from using its own rhetoric to neutralize its worst effects to insisting on a clear-eyed, tragic acceptance of the human condition. Scholarly yet accessible, this book is at once an ambitious contribution to the history of political thought and a work that speaks to our times.

Author: Alison McQueen
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Published: 08/16/2018
Pages: 249
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.82lbs
Size: 9.00h x 6.00w x 0.57d
ISBN13: 9781316606544
ISBN10: 1316606546
BISAC Categories:
- Political Science | History & Theory | General
- Philosophy | Political