The political philosophy of liberalism was first formulated during the Enlightenment in response to the growth of the modern nation-state and its authority and power over the individuals living within its boundaries. Liberalism is now the dominant ideology in the Western world, but it covers a broad swathe of different (and sometimes rival) ideas and traditions and its essential features can be hard to define. The Cambridge Companion to Liberalism offers a rich and accessible exploration of liberalism as a tradition of political thought. It includes chapters on the historical development of liberalism, its normative foundations, and its core philosophical concepts, as well as a survey of liberal approaches and responses to a range of important topics including freedom, equality, toleration, religion, and nationalism. The volume will be valuable for students and scholars in political philosophy, political theory, and the history of political thought.

A single volume overview and guide to liberalism as a tradition of political thought
Examines liberalism from the perspective of historical political thought and contemporary political theory and philosophy
Surveys and contributes to ongoing debates in contemporary political theory

Table of Contents

Introduction Steven Wall
Part I. Historical Perspectives:
1. American liberalism from colonialism to the Civil War and beyond Mark E. Button
2. Liberalism and the morality of commercial society Jeremy Jennings
3. Liberalism:
1900–40 Alan Ryan
Part II. Normative Foundations:
4. Contractarianism and the problem of exclusion Philip Cook
5. Public reason liberalism Gerald F. Gaus
6. Autonomy and liberalism: a troubled marriage? John Christman
7. Liberalism, neutrality, and democracy Steven Wall
Part III. Topics and Concepts:
8. Contemporary liberalism and toleration Andrew J. Cohen
9. Liberalism and equality Richard Arneson
10. Disagreement and the justification of democracy Thomas Christiano
11. Liberalism and economic liberty Jeppe von Platz and John Tomasi
12. Liberalism and religion Nicholas Wolterstorff
13. Liberalism and multiculturalism Daniel Weinstock
14. Liberalism and nationalism Paul Kelly
Part IV. Challenges:
15. Feminist critiques of liberalism Linda M. G. Zerilli
16. The republican critique of liberalism Frank Lovett
17. The conservative critique of liberalism John Skorupski.

Editor

Steven Wall, University of Arizona
Steven Wall is Professor of Philosophy at the University of Arizona. He has published widely on topics in contemporary political philosophy. He is the author of Liberalism, Perfectionism and Restraint (1998), editor (with George Klosko) of Perfectionism and Neutrality: Essays in Liberal Theory (2003) and (with David Sobel) of Reasons for Action (2009).

Contributors

Steven Wall, Mark E. Button, Jeremy Jennings, Alan Ryan, Philip Cook, Gerald F. Gaus, John Christman, Andrew J. Cohen, Richard Arneson, Thomas Christiano, Jeppe von Platz, John Tomasi, Nicholas Wolterstorff, Daniel Weinstock, Paul Kelly, Linda M. G. Zerilli, Frank Lovett, John Skorupski