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Abstract
This article examines whether Aquinas's political science is philosophy or theology, a question that arises from his understanding of happiness. If the supernatural vision of God constitutes perfect beatitude or the ultimate end, then how can an account of imperfect happiness—political virtue—be given without reference to it and hence without appeal to revealed theology? I argue that Aquinas provides a strictly philosophical account of imperfect happiness by showing that, among temporal goods, virtue most fully instantiates general attributes of beatitude such as self-sufficiency and continuity, even though it does not perfectly instantiate them. This way of demonstrating the superiority of virtue to other temporal goods requires no appeal to supernatural beatitude, and thus political science, which takes this imperfect happiness as its first principle, is philosophy.

The dominant belief among both teachers and graduate students of political science seems to be that political theory constitutes the heart of their subject; yet political theory is not, in practice, the core of political science teaching. Such is the schizoid condition of political science and political scientists that is revealed by the investigations of the Committee for the Advancement of Teaching of the American Political Science Association. The hypothesis advanced in this note presents a dual reason for the unfortunate situation: it is partly that political theorists have failed to keep up with the times and have not engaged in sufficient value-free theoretical study of the raw data of politics, and partly that vast numbers of political scientists have falsely concluded that one of the most important parts of the traditional study of political theory—political ethics—is not susceptible of scientific treatment and should rigorously be eschewed.

This book deals with the role and place of the general will in modern and contemporary political thought. This project is carried out at the crossroads of the history of ideas and political philosophy. It extensively develops historical and philosophical themes, showing modifications to the idea of the general will in the writings of thinkers who sometimes represent very distant epochs. The author tracks down the birth and the development of the idea of the general will in ancient, medieval

Political philosophy is the study of the ethical relationships between individuals, society, and the state. In this Libertarianism.org Guide, professor Jason Brennan provides a working knowledge of many of the major issues, ideas, and arguments in philosophy

Political philosophy is that area of philosophy dealing with politics and government, that unstable mix of war and foedus, conflictual division and authoritative union. As 'philosophy' it is part of the vita contemplativa, which is pure thinking; as 'political' it has always something to do with vita activa, that is action and praxis in a world that exists with its own rules and language games before any philosophical attempt to make that world the embodiment of a theory as Plato did (Arendt, 1953, 1959). Philosophy, like science, is about truth whereas politics is about power or, more accu¬rately, 'the constrained use of social power' (Goodin and Klingemann, 1996). This formulation reintroduces truth into the possible constraints alongside rhetoric, persuasion, compromise and negotiation.

Complementary and mutually reinforcing, political science and political philosophy lie at the heart of the study of governance. The concept of how government could or should operate in the abstract is the province of political philosophy, while political science concerns itself with the concrete. Readers will chronicle the history and development of both fields and introduces readers to the major thinkers-including Aristotle, Machiavelli, and Weber-whose works have informed the study of politics the world over

From Greek antiquity to the latest theories, this historical survey of political philosophy not only covers the major thinkers in the field but also explores the theme of how political philosophy relates to the nature of man. It illustrates how the great political thinkers have always grounded their political thought in what the author terms a "normative anthropology," which typically has not only ethical but metaphysical and/or theological components. Starting with the ancient Greek Sophists, author Michael J. White examines how thinkers over the centuries have approached such polit

War has been a key topic of speculation and theorising ever since the invention of philosophy in classical antiquity. This anthology brings together the work of distinguished contemporary political philosophers and theorists who address the leading normative and conceptual issues concerning war. The book is divided into three parts: initiating war, waging war, and ending war. The contributors aim to provide a comprehensive introduction to each of these main areas of dispute concerning war. Each essay is an original contribution to ongoing debates on various aspects of war and also provides a survey of the main topics in each subfield. Serving as a companion to the theoretical issues pertaining to war, this volume also is an important contribution to debates in political philosophy. It can serve as a textbook for relevant courses on war offered in philosophy departments, religious studies programs, and law schools

Cover -- Half Title -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Table of Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Part I: Setting the Task -- 1. Some Preliminary Considerations -- 1.1 The Social World -- 1.2 What Is Political Philosophy? -- 1.3 How We Will Proceed -- 1.4 A Final Preliminary about Philosophy -- For Further Reading -- 2. Beginning Where We Are -- 2.1 Where to Begin? -- 2.2 Liberalism in Political Philosophy -- 2.2.1 Three Core Commitments of Liberalism -- 2.2.2 Liberalism and the Challenge of Anarchism -- 2.2.3 Further Commitments of Liberalism