Political Philosophy and Cultural Renewal: Collected Essays of Francis Graham Wilson

by Wilson,Francis

• ISBN13: 9780765800459
• ISBN10: 0765800454
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2001-01-31
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Francis Graham Wilson was a central figure in the revival of interest in political philosophy and American political thought in the mid-twentieth century. While he is best known as a Catholic writer and conservative theorist, his most significant contribution is his original interpretation of the development of American politics. Central to his thought was a process of self-interpretation by the citizenry, a quest for ultimate meaning turning to a divine, transcendent, basis of history and shared experience. Although Wilson's writings were extensive and influential, they have not been readily available for decades. Political Philosophy and Cultural Renewal brings together a coherent and representative selection of his work, highlighting his concern for the common good and his belief in personal and societal restraint as an alternative to political partisanship and superficiality.Wilson's affirmation of a republican inheritance encourages contemporary students of politics to revisit the Founders' views of,diffused political authority. His remarkable contribution to American political philosophy is a full-fledged theory of cultural renewal that has lost none of its relevance for contemporary political and social issues. This volume will be of interest to historians, political scientists, and American studies specialists.

Table of Contents

Introduction	1	(6)
H. Lee Cheek, Jr.
M. Susan Power
Kathy B. Cheek
Francis Graham Wilson: An Appreciation	7	(16)
M. Susan Power
Part 1: Towards a Theory of Political Life
Human Nature and Politics	23	(18)
The Revival of Organic Theory	41	(6)
The Structure of Modern Ideology	47	(20)
Part 2: The Political Theory of Renewal and Conservation
A Theory of Conservatism	67	(16)
The Political Philosophy of Conservatism	83	(22)
The Ethics of Political Conservatism	105	(16)
The Emergence of a Conservatism Realism	121	(8)
The Conservative in Crisis: Notes on De Officiis	129	(22)
Part 3: Sources of Renewal in the American Political Mind
On Jeffersonian Tradition	151	(20)
Democratic Theory: A Central Issue	171	(12)
Ethics in the Study of Democratic Politics	183	(8)
The Federalist on Public Opinion	191	(14)
Pessimism in American Politics	205	(18)
Notes from the Democratic Rhetoric	223	(28)
A Wilson Checklist	251	(4)
Index	255