
Political Theory
Methods and Approaches
Published on 31. July 2008
Book
Paperback/Softback
236 pages
978-0-19-923009-9 (ISBN)
Description
Political theorists are too often silent on questions of method and approach. David Leopold and Marc Stears have assembled a distinguished group of contributors to break that silence and to explain and defend the research methods they utilise in their own work. The result is a rich and varied collection which does not suggest that there is only one right way to conduct political theory, but rather introduces readers to many of the often unelaborated methods and approaches that currently inform the work of leading scholars in the field. Amongst the topics covered are the complex and contested connections between political theory and a range of adjacent disciplines - including moral philosophy, the empirical social sciences, the history of political thought, the world of 'real' politics, critical social theory, and ideology. Both individually and as a collection, these essays will promote understanding and provoke further debate amongst students and established scholars alike. They will be encouraged to reflect on their own methodological assumptions, to re-examine the practical tools of analysis they employ, and to re-evaluate why the research they do matters.
Reviews / Votes
its great merit is that its contributions span the analyticalcritical and normativedescriptive divide(s) ... an informative and balanced introduction to methods and approaches available to political theorists. Magdalena Zolkos, Political Studies ReviewMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 13 mm
Weight
365 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-923009-9 (9780199230099)
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Schweitzer Classification
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Book
07/2008
Oxford University Press
€62.00
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E-Book
07/2008
OUP eBook
€33.99
Available for download
Persons
Marc Stears is University Lecturer in Political Theory in the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, and Fellow in Politics at University College, Oxford. He is the author of Progressives, Pluralists and the Problems of the State (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002), and of numerous articles in political theory, the history of political thought, and American political development. He is currently completing a book on radical democratic theory in the twentieth century United States entitled, Democracy's Demands: Deliberation, Agonism and the American Radical Tradition.
David Leopold teaches political theory in the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, and is a Fixed-Term Fellow in Politics at Mansfield College, Oxford. His recent publications include: The Young Karl Marx. German Philosophy, Modern Politics, and Human Flourishing (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007); 'The State and I: Max Stirner's Anarchism', in Douglas Moggach (edited), The New Hegelians (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006), pp.176-199; and 'The Structure of Marx and Engels' Considered Account of Utopian Socialism', History of Political Thought, 26/3 (2005), pp.443-466. He is currently working on some issues raised by utopianism in both the history of political thought and contemporary political theory.
David Leopold teaches political theory in the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Oxford, and is a Fixed-Term Fellow in Politics at Mansfield College, Oxford. His recent publications include: The Young Karl Marx. German Philosophy, Modern Politics, and Human Flourishing (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007); 'The State and I: Max Stirner's Anarchism', in Douglas Moggach (edited), The New Hegelians (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006), pp.176-199; and 'The Structure of Marx and Engels' Considered Account of Utopian Socialism', History of Political Thought, 26/3 (2005), pp.443-466. He is currently working on some issues raised by utopianism in both the history of political thought and contemporary political theory.
Content
Acknowledgements ; Notes on Contributors ; Introduction ; 1. Analytical Political Philosophy ; 2. Political Philosophy for Earthlings ; 3. Political Theory, Social Science, and Real Politics ; 4. Why be Formal? ; 5. Recognition as Fact and Norm: The Method of Critique ; 6. Dialectical Approaches ; 7. Political Theory and History ; 8. Using Archival Sources to Theorise about Politics ; 9. Political Theory and the Boundaries of Politics ; 10. Thinking Politically and Thinking about Politics: Language, Interpretation, and Ideology ; Further Reading ; Index