Overview

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.

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9781108478816

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'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

Author Information

Jeffrey R. Collins is Associate Professor of History at Queen's University, Canada. He is the author of The Allegiance of Thomas Hobbes (2005) and numerous articles on modern religion and political thought in journals such as Modern Intellectual History and the Journal of Modern History. He is also a regular book reviewer for the Wall Street Journal and the Times Literary Supplement.

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