Puritan Democracy of Thomas Hill Green

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The central concern of this book is to demonstrate how Puritanism was a theme which ran through all Green's biography and political philosophy. It thereby reveals how Green’s connections with Evangelicalism and his known affinities with religious dissent came from his way of conceiving Puritanism. In Green’s eyes, its anti-formalist viewpoint made Puritanism the most suitable tool for avoiding the drawbacks of democracy. The key objective of the book is to illustrate how the philosophy elaborated by Green aimed to encapsulate the best of Puritanism whilst eschewing the dangerous abstractions of both Puritan philosophy and German idealism. It follows that Green’s conception of positive and negative freedom, and his vision of political obligation, stemmed from his effort to revive the Puritan heritage rather than from an ambiguous flirtation with idealism. The book purports to show how the influence of Puritanism in Green’s political thought is an element which can help to integrate the literature in the area, contributing to a better comprehension of a philosopher who, despite being unanimously considered as the founder of the so-called Oxford idealist school, had a very difficult and sometimes obscure connection with idealism. It has been widely argued that Green’s relationship with idealism seemed to be infected by a religious germ which, because it was unrelated to German idealism, gave it a bad taste. This study aims to encourage further investigation into the nature and propagation of that germ in the British idealist School.
Source: Philosophy in Review

Credit: Denys P. Leighton

"De Sanctis offers some insightful re-readings of Green's writings - particularly the English revolution lectures and the undergraduate essay, a previously unpublished selection of which he appends to the study - that will be much appreciated by scholars of British Idealism. Green Specialists will locate many valuble nuggets here."

Source: Victorian Studies

Credit: David Weinstein

"De Sanctis is to be commended for drawing attention to influences on Green's political theorizing that other recent interpreters of Green, including this reviewer, have ignored."

Source: Australian Journal of Politics and History

Credit: R.J. Halliday

"de Sanctis is to be congratulated. Anyone interested in Victorian Liberalism will need to read this book and I look forward to his future publications."

Source: Times Higher Education Supplement

Credit: Thom Brooks

"Excellent discussion of Green's contributions to democratic theory and political obligation."
Hardcover
- Publication Date: 05 October 2005
- ISBN-13: 9781845400385
- Extent: Main content page count : 250
- Code: 1845400380
- Dimensions: 13.5 x 21 x 2 cm
- Weight: 600 grams
- List Price: £30.00
- ONIX Version 2.1, Version 3

Details

Title: Puritan Democracy of Thomas Hill Green
Author: Alberto De Sanctis
Collection: British Idealist Studies, Series 3: Green
Language: English
Publisher: Imprint Academic
Imprint: Imprint Academic

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