Constitutionalism, Freedom, and Modernity in the Thought of F. A. Hayek, Michael Oakeshott, and Leo Strauss
ABSTRACT
F. A. Hayek, Leo Strauss, and Michael Oakeshott were committed to restating the case for constitutional government in the aftermath of World War II and in the face of communist totalitarianism. Beneath this unity of concern, however, lay profound disagreement about the precise meaning of constitutionalism in modern Western societies and some features of modernity that pose a threat to it. The conference explored the three writers’ conceptions of constitutionalism, their different interpretations of modernity, and their disparate analyses of the conditions necessary for maintaining a free society.
READING LIST
From Liberty Fund
On History and Other Essays
by
By Michael Oakeshott
Foreword by Timothy Fuller
In five essays, including three on historiography, one of the greatest minds in English political thought in the twentieth century explores themes central to the human experience: the nature of history, the rule of law, and the quest for power that is intrinsic to the human condition. Michael Oakeshott believed,…
Additional Readings
Aron, Raymond. In Defense of Political Reason: Essays by Raymond Aron. Compiled by and edited by Daniel J. Mahoney. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 1994.
Strauss, Leo. An Introduction to Political Philosophy: Ten Essays by Leo Strauss. Edited by Hilail Gildin. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1989.
Canovan, Margaret. “Crusaders, sceptics and the nation.” Journal of Political Ideologies 3, no. 3 (1998): 237-250.
Hayek, F. A. The Constitution of Liberty. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1978.
Hayek, F. A. Law, Legislation and Liberty, Volume I: Rules and Order. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1973.
Hayek, F. A. Law, Legislation and Liberty, Volume 3: The Political Order of a Free People [Phoenix series]. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979.
Hayek, F. A. Law, Legislation and Liberty, Volume 2: The Mirage of Social Justice [Phoenix series]. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1976.
Oakeshott, Michael. Rationalism in Politics and Other Essays. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, Inc., 1991.
Strauss, Leo. Natural Right and History. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1999.