Politics and collective action in Thomas Aquinas's On Kingship

Spindler, Anselm (2019) Politics and collective action in Thomas Aquinas's On Kingship. Journal of the History of Philosophy, 57 (3). pp. 419-442. ISSN 0022-5053

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Abstract

Collective action is a much-discussed topic today, but not in the historiography of philosophy. Therefore, I would like to contribute a little bit to our understanding of the history of this concept by exploring the political philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. A compelling interpretation of his treatise On Kingship emerges when we read it not, as is often the case, in terms of his moral perfectionism, but as expressing the idea that the political community is an artificial and distinct subject of agency. Thus, the political philosophy of On Kingship turns out to be congenial to contemporary approaches to collective action.

Item Type:	Article
Official URL:	https://www.press.jhu.edu/journals/journal-history...
Additional Information:	© 2018 Journal of the History of Philosophy, Inc.
Divisions:	CPNSS
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > B Philosophy (General)
Date Deposited:	08 Mar 2018 14:07
Last Modified:	29 Feb 2024 18:30
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/87076

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