Political Philosophy - A Very Short Introduction

157 Pages·2003·0.62 MB·english

by  David Miller

Political Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction
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David Miller
POLITICAL
PHILOSOPHY
A Very Short Introduction
1
3
Great Clarendon Street, Oxford ox2 6dp
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© David Miller 2003
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Database right Oxford University Press (maker)
First published as a Very Short Introduction 2003
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British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Data available
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Data available
ISBN 13: 978–0–19–280395–5
ISBN 10: 0–19–280395–6
5 7 9 10 8 6
Typeset by RefineCatch Ltd, Bungay, Suffolk
Printed in Great Britain by TJ International Ltd., Padstow, Cornwall
Contents
Preface ix
List of illustrations xi
1
Why do we need political philosophy? 1
2
Political authority 19
3
Democracy 37
4
Freedom and the limits of government 55
5
Justice 74
6
Feminism and multiculturalism 92
7
Nations, states, and global justice 112
Further reading 133
Index 141
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Preface
I wanted this book to make political philosophy engaging and accessible
to people who had never encountered it before, and so I have tried hard
to write as simply as possible without sacrificing accuracy. Explaining
some fairly abstract ideas without lapsing into the technical jargon that
deadens so much academic writing today proved to be an interesting
challenge. I am extremely grateful to friends from different walks of life
who agreed to read the first draft of the manuscript, and along with
general encouragement made many helpful suggestions: Graham
Anderson, George Brown, Sue Miller, Elaine Poole, and Adam Swift, as
well as two readers from Oxford University Press. I should also like to
thank Zofia Stemplowska for invaluable help in preparing the final
manuscript.