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The Rise and Fall of Rational Control: The History of Modern Political Philosophy
336 pages, Hardcover
Published January 20, 2026
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February 13, 2026
I really enjoyed Mansfield's delightful prose, but I'm most impressed by his ability to get to the heart of the complex philosophies he discusses and presents throughout. The influence of the western tradition on the author, who identifies as a conservative, is also quite obvious. I won't claim I understood - or agreed with - every single thing he tried to express or hint at (for that, I need to study political philosophy more), but what I did comprehend was very interesting and useful. The book is primarily about political philosophy of course, but it is also quite insightful for understanding philosophical developments in general over the last half a millennium. I anticipate reading this many more times in the future to fully appreciate its depth & analyses.
Displaying 1 of 1 review