Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

As an aspiring political theorist who is intimately familiar with the work of many of the authors on this list, I can say that this book is quite obviously simplistic, agenda-driven garbage that has no place in a classroom. Every single one of these authors has something valuable and necessary to teach us, some in direct and meaningful ways. Machiavelli was not simply amoral; he held a republican view of liberty and citizenship that was influential in struggles against royal absolutism for centuries. Hobbes has challenged generations of students to think deeply about the limits of governmental power and how far we ought to trade liberties for the sake of security. Rousseau was one of the few thinkers of the Enlightenment who wasn't blinded by its promises, and his critique of modern society echoes many of the concerns that many on both sides of the political spectrum hold today. And hardly anyone in history has been more misunderstood and dragged through the mud, by both his detractors and his most committed disciples, than Karl Marx, with the possible exception of Jesus Christ. Every one of these authors became popular and widely-read for a reason; they made powerful arguments that resonated with the aspirations or concerns of millions of human beings. To understand the impact they have had on our world, it is necessary to study them objectively - 100% objectively. It is necessary to actually read "The Prince", "Leviathan", and so on, and not take someone's word for it. As for the "Christian" angle of critique, let's remember that it is a largely Americanizied, libertarianized version of Christianity - millions of Christians in every other part of the world have been able to appreciate and even critically employ the ideas of at least some of these philosophers, Liberation Theology in Latin America being a prime example (it fuses Christianity and Marxism and has millions of adherents). The only thing I would ever use this disgraceful book for is an example of how not to teach the history of modern political thought.