The Cambridge Companion to the Scottish Enlightenment (Cambridge Companions to Philosophy)

The editor Alexander Broadie is Professor of Logic and Rhetoric at Glasgow University- a chair once occupied by Adam Smith author of "Wealth of Nations". This book, "The Scottish Enlightenment", written for the general reader, is a great treatise on a most astonishing period of Scottish history during the 18th century. Broadie writes; "that what gave the Scottish Enlightenment its character as a distinct historical movement was the complex set of relations with a group of geniuses and other immensely creative people living in each others intellectual pockets. Broadie and his colleagues write about the leading Scottish luminaries in the fields of science, philosophy, history, economics, and the arts. The ideas of Hume, Smith, Reid, Ferguson, Hutcheson, Kames, Turnbull, and others had an immense influence on the great thinkers of Europe as well as our founding fathers here in America. The term "Enlightenment" suggests emergence from darkness. There are two essential features of the enlightenment. First, a demand that people think for themselves. You do not take ideas on faith but you inquire study and observe for yourself. Second, social virtue of tolerance of ideas. The state and church cannot punish one for their ideas. This allows literati of men to meet and exchange ideas on a plethora of subjects and to spread these ideas through their writings so that other literati in Europe can comment and react to them. Thinking becomes a civil activity with ideas in the public domain. These men love liberty and are looking to build a better society for humanity. They believe that if morality is about anything it is about - protecting the civilized values vested in society. No wonder these men had a great influence on our founding fathers! The Scottish Enlightenment was Scotland's chief export to America. The consequences for the Scottish Enlightenment were much theorizing about society and social change and the nature of freedom. If you are truly interested in a classical education put this book on the top of your reading list! I recommend this book for anyone interested in philosophy, history, political science, and history of America's founding era. contributors......Page 8 acknowledgements......Page 12 chronology of events relating tothe scottish enlightenment......Page 13 Introduction......Page 18 1 The contexts of the ScottishEnlightenment......Page 26 2 Religion andrational theology......Page 48 3 The human mindandits powers......Page 77 4 Anthropology: the ‘original’ ofhuman nature......Page 96 5 Science in the ScottishEnlightenment......Page 111 6 Scepticism andcommon sense......Page 134 7 Moral sense andthe foundationsof morals......Page 153 8 The political theory of theScottish Enlightenment......Page 174 9 Economic theory......Page 195 10 Natural jurisprudence and thetheory of justice......Page 222 11 Legal theory......Page 239 12 Sociality andsocialisation......Page 260 13 Historiography......Page 275 14 Art andaesthetic theory......Page 297 15 The impact on Europe......Page 315 16 The impact on America: Scottishphilosophy andthe Americanfounding......Page 333 17 The nineteenth-centuryaftermath......Page 355 select bibliography......Page 368 indexse =......Page 376 The second edition of this Companion presents a philosophical perspective on an eighteenth-century phenomenon that has had a profound influence on Western culture. A distinguished team of contributors examines the writings of David Hume, Adam Smith, Thomas Reid, Adam Ferguson and other Scottish thinkers. Their subjects range across philosophy, natural theology, economics, anthropology, natural science, and law and the arts, and in addition, they relate the Scottish Enlightenment to its historical context and assess its impact and legacy. The result is a comprehensive and accessible volume that illuminates the richness, the intellectual variety and the underlying unity of this important movement. This volume contains five entirely new chapters on morality, the human mind, aesthetics, sentimentalism and political economy, and eleven other chapters have been significantly revised and updated. The book will be of interest to a wide range of readers in philosophy, theology, literature and the history of ideas. The Cambridge Companion to the Scottish Enlightenment offers a philosophical perspective on an eighteenth-century movement that has been profoundly influential on western culture. A distinguished team of contributors examines the writings of David Hume, Adam Smith, Thomas Reid, Adam Ferguson, Colin Maclaurin and other Scottish thinkers, in fields including philosophy, natural theology, economics, anthropology, natural science and law. In addition, the contributors relate the Scottish Enlightenment to its historical context and assess its impact and legacy in Europe, America and beyond. The result is a comprehensive and accessible volume that illuminates the richness, the intellectual variety and the underlying unity of this important movement. It will be of interest to a wide range of readers in philosophy, theology, literature and the history of ideas. In this volume a distinguished team of contributors examines the writings of David Hume, Adam Smith, Thomas Reid, Adam Ferguson, Colin Maclaurin and other Scottish thinkers, in fields including philosophy, natural theology, economics, anthropology, natural science and law This volume offers a philosophical perspective on an 18th century movement that has been influential on western culture Edited By Alexander Broadie. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 351-358) And Index.