Political Theory in Modern Germany

Beschreibung

This book provides an accessible and comprehensive introduction tothe major political thinkers of modern Germany. It includeschapters on the works of Max Weber, Carl Schmitt, Franz Neumann,Otto Kirchheimer, Jurgen Habermas and Niklas Luhmann. These worksare examined in their social and historical contexts, ranging fromthe period of Bismarck to the present day. A clear picture is presented of the connections between individualtheoretical positions and the general political conditions ofmodern Germany. Areas of political history covered in particulardepth include nineteenth-century legal and parliamentary history,aspects of German liberalism, Weimar social democracy, politicalCatholicism, Adenauer and Erhard, Brandt's reforms and theTendenzwende of the late 1970s. By closely linking intellectual andpolitical history, this work examines how recent German politicaltheory has developed as a set of varying responses to recurringaspects and problems of political life in modern Germany. At thesame time, it addresses the philosophical and politicalimplications of the works which it treats, and it criticallyexamines how modern German political theory has contributed tobroader attempts to theorize political legitimacy and politicsitself. This book will be of interest to students of political theory,German studies and European political history.

Autor*in

Chris Thornhill

Themen in »Political Theory in Modern Germany«

Comparative Politics Philosophie Philosophy Political & Economic Philosophy Political Philosophy & Theory Political Science Politikwissenschaft Politische Philosophie u. Politiktheorie Politische u. Ökonomische Philosophie Vergleichende Politik

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'This is as much a work on German political institutions as it is abook on theory ... Thornhill situates each thinker's theory withinthe debate over the direction of political institutions inGermany.' New Political Science 'This immensely learned and informative study examines indetail the work of four of the leading political theorists inGermany in the 20th Century: Max Weber, Carl Schmitt, JürgenHabermas, and Niklas Luhmann, along with a briefer treatment ofFranz Neumann and Otto Kirchheimer. Thornhill's aim is notonly to explain ideas, but also to "illuminate theinterrelations between political theory and political event."He provides a penetrating account of the main themes of each of hischosen authors and situates them carefully in terms of politicaldevelopments within Germany. The objective might seem to invite asuperficial survey, but there is nothing superficial inThornhill's treatment. He seems to have read everythingwritten by and about his subjects and to know the history ofpolitical and economic developments in Germany very thoroughly. Theresult is an authoritative, stimulating, and quite challengingaccount of an influential body of work. It is accompanied by a veryextensive bibliography, devoted mostly to primary sources. Highlyrecommended for upper-division undergraduates andabove.' Donald J. Maletz, in: Choice July/August 2000. Selected for the Choice Outstanding Academic Books list for2000
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