Skip to content

Due to technical disruption we are experiencing some delays to publication. We are working hard to restore services as soon as possible and apologise for the inconvenience caused. Find out more

Register Sign in Wishlist

In the Shadow of Leviathan
John Locke and the Politics of Conscience

£41.99

Award Winner

Part of Ideas in Context

  • Date Published: October 2021
  • availability: Available
  • format: Paperback
  • isbn: 9781108746229

£ 41.99
Paperback

Add to cart Add to wishlist

Other available formats:
Hardback, eBook


Looking for an inspection copy?

This title is not currently available on inspection

Description
Product filter button
Description
Contents
Resources
Courses
About the Authors
  • Thomas Hobbes and John Locke sit together in the canon of political thought but are rarely treated in common historical accounts. This book narrates their intertwined careers during the Restoration period, when the two men found themselves in close proximity and entangled in many of the same political conflicts. Bringing new source material to bear, In the Shadow of Leviathan establishes the influence of Hobbesian thought over Locke, particularly in relation to the preeminent question of religious toleration. Excavating Hobbes's now forgotten case for a prudent, politique toleration gifted by sovereign power, Jeffrey R. Collins argues that modern, liberal thinking about toleration was transformed by Locke's gradual emancipation from this Hobbesian mode of thought. This book investigates those landmark events - the civil war, Restoration, the popish plot, the Revolution of 1688 - which eventually forced Locke to confront the limits of politique toleration, and to devise an account of religious freedom as an inalienable right.

    • Reopens the old and neglected question of Hobbes's influence over Locke with new evidence and interpretive methods
    • Develops and explains not just the arguments of Hobbes and Locke, but their political context, the circulation and reception of their ideas, and the print history of their books
    • Draws out the significance of early modern intellectual history to modern, liberal thinking around religious toleration
    Read more

    Awards

    • Winner, 2021 Morris D. Forkosch Prize, American Historical Association

    Reviews & endorsements

    'This is a major scholarly contribution, and among many important contributions of this extremely valuable new book by one of the most important interpreters of Hobbes, and now also of Locke.' John Marshall, Hobbes Studies

    'In the Shadow of Leviathan is a worthy sequel to Jeffrey Collins's outstanding 2005 book, The Allegiance of Thomas Hobbes … Among the many virtues of Collins's book, the most impressive is his meticulous examination of the historical context in which the shift in Locke's thinking occurred. In a time in which many academic books are written too hastily, it is satisfying to read a work that is clearly the product of many years of painstaking research. Political theorists, in particular, will find that they have much to learn - as this one did - from Collins's thorough examination of the debates and political dynamics of the Interregnum and especially the Restoration.' Devin Stauffer, The Review of Politics

    'A definitive and transformative study.' E. J. Eisenach, Choice

    '… Collins's consistently brilliant reading of Hobbes and Locke through the lens of 'the Restoration toleration wars' provides a vital reminder of the inadequacy of toleration, in and of itself, as the interpretive key to the ecclesiastical politics of the era.' Brent S. Sirota, Journal of British Studies

    '… In the Shadow of Leviathan is an important work of scholarship from which no one can fail to learn a great deal. It is to be hoped that it will stimulate other scholars to rescue the relationship between Locke and Hobbes from a period of anomalous and wholly undeserved neglect.' Nicholas Jolley, Journal of the History of Philosophy

    'Jeffrey Collins has written a hulk of a book, one carrying not an ounce of fat. Erudite and forensic, it is a challenging read. But it is also a book that shows what intellectual history at its very best can do …' Robert G. Ingram, The Journal of Ecclesiastical History

    '… Jeffrey R. Collins's magnificent study In the Shadow of Leviathan: John Locke and the Politics of Conscience invites us to set aside these familiar configurations in a favor of a more nuanced set of intellectual and political affiliations and disaffiliations …' Brent S. Sirota, Journal of British Studies

    See more reviews

    Customer reviews

    Not yet reviewed

    Be the first to review

    Review was not posted due to profanity

    ×

    , create a review

    (If you're not , sign out)

    Please enter the right captcha value
    Please enter a star rating.
    Your review must be a minimum of 12 words.

    How do you rate this item?

    ×

    Product details

    • Date Published: October 2021
    • format: Paperback
    • isbn: 9781108746229
    • length: 458 pages
    • dimensions: 227 x 151 x 25 mm
    • weight: 0.65kg
    • availability: Available
  • Table of Contents

    Acknowledgements
    Note on the text
    List of abbreviations
    Introduction
    1. John Locke and Interregnum Hobbism
    2. The Restoration projects of Thomas Hobbes
    3. John Locke and the Restoration politique
    4. Non-domination liberty in spiritual context
    5. Locke, conscience, and the Libertas Ecclesiae
    6. Locke and Catholicism: the 'Roman Leviathan'
    7. Locke and a 'more liberal' Hobbism
    Conclusion. Conscience and Liberalism's two paths
    Bibliography
    Index.

  • Author

    Jeffrey R. Collins, Queen's University, Ontario

    Awards

    • Winner, 2021 Morris D. Forkosch Prize, American Historical Association

Related Books

Sorry, this resource is locked

Please register or sign in to request access. If you are having problems accessing these resources please email lecturers@cambridge.org

Register Sign in
Please note that this file is password protected. You will be asked to input your password on the next screen.

» Proceed

You are now leaving the Cambridge University Press website. Your eBook purchase and download will be completed by our partner www.ebooks.com. Please see the permission section of the www.ebooks.com catalogue page for details of the print & copy limits on our eBooks.

Continue ×

Continue ×

Continue ×
warning icon

Turn stock notifications on?

You must be signed in to your Cambridge account to turn product stock notifications on or off.

Sign in Create a Cambridge account arrow icon
×

Find content that relates to you

Join us online

This site uses cookies to improve your experience. Read more Close

Are you sure you want to delete your account?

This cannot be undone.

Cancel

Thank you for your feedback which will help us improve our service.

If you requested a response, we will make sure to get back to you shortly.

×
Please fill in the required fields in your feedback submission.
×