Jean Hampton wrote on an astonishing variety of topics. A small collection cannot hope to convey the full power and breadth of her thought. But it can suggest its richness, and it can push our own thinking further on issues she cared about. I have chosen essays on some of her central concerns in moral, legal, and political philosophy – concerns she returned to repeatedly to improve her view. Fortunately, much of Jean's work on other topics – in particular, her book on reason – remains in print. I have appended a selected bibliography to help guide the reader looking for further engagement with Jean's philosophy.

I would like to thank Tom Christiano, Richard Healey, Christopher Morris, David Schmidtz, and three anonymous referees from Cambridge University Press for their guidance. I am especially grateful to David Gauthier for his foreword and remembrance. The late Terry Moore helped to initiate the project at Cambridge, and Beatrice Rehl and Stephanie Sakson patiently saw it through to its completion. Work on this collection was supported by the Jean Hampton Memorial Fund at the University of Arizona.

These chapters originally appeared in the publications listed below. Permission to reprint them is gratefully acknowledged. Chapter 2, “Feminist Contractarianism,” previously appeared in A Mind of One's Own: Feminist Essays on Reason and Objectivity, ed. L. Anthony and C. Witt. Copyright © 1992 by Westview Press. Reprinted by permission of Westview Press, a member of Perseus Books, LLC.