Ferguson: An Essay on the History of Civil Society
Author | : Adam Ferguson |
Publisher | : Cambridge University Press |
Total Pages | : 258 |
Release | : 1996-02-01 |
ISBN-10 | : 9781107782471 |
ISBN-13 | : 1107782473 |
Rating | : 4/5 (473 Downloads) |
Download or read book Ferguson: An Essay on the History of Civil Society written by Adam Ferguson and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1996-02-01 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Adam Ferguson's Essay on the History of Civil Society (first published in 1767) is a classic of the Scottish - and European - Enlightenment. Drawing on such diverse sources as classical authors and contemporary travel literature, Ferguson offers a complex model of historical advance which challenges both Hume's and Smith's embrace of modernity and the primitivism of Rousseau. Ferguson combines a subtle analysis of the emergence of modern commercial society with a critique of its abandonment of civic and communal virtues. Central to Ferguson's theory of citizenship are the themes of conflict, play, political participation and military valour. The Essay is a bold and novel attempt to reclaim the tradition of active, virtuous citizenship and apply it to the modern state.