Rilegato

ISBN 10: 0199274959 ISBN 13: 9780199274956

Casa editrice: Oxford University Press, 2006

Margaret Gilbert offers an incisive new approach to a classic problem of political philosophy: when and why should I do what the law tells me to do? Do I have special obligations to conform to the laws of my own country and if so, why? In what sense, if any, must I fight in wars in which my country is engaged, if ordered to do so, or suffer the penalty for law breaking--including the death penalty? Gilbert's accessible book offers a provocative and compelling case in favor of citizens' obligations to the state, while examining how these can be squared with self-interest and other competing considerations.

About the Author:

Margaret Gilbert is a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Connecticut.

Review:

Does membership in a political society, in and of itself, involve obligations to uphold that societys political institutions? Margaret Gilbert offers a novel argument in defense of an affirmative answer to this question . . . As a renewed and improved defense of two historical accounts rarely given much credence today, namely an argument by appeal to conceptual analysis and an argument by appeal to actual consent, Gilberts book deserves the attention of all those concerned with the topic of political obligation. Moreover, given her intriguing analysis of a wide range of social phenomena, including promises and agreements, Gilberts book merits the attention of a wider audience as well. * David Lefkowitz, Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews * [a] rich, comprehensive, ambitious and admirably clear book...Her great achievement is to remind us that, by virtue of the fact that there is, or ought to be , a place for joint intentional phenomena in our 'folk' theories of mind and action, concepts like those of authority, punishment, rights and ownership have a home in those 'folk' theories too: these concepts are not the sole province of law and state politics. For this reason, philosophers of many different specialisms ought to ponder Gilbert's book. * Thomas H. Smith, Mind Journal * Margaret Gilberts A Theory of Political Obligation is an incredibly rich work on an important topic. Gilbert has written a series of influential and important articles on the nature of social groups and joint action, and all of her work in those articles is impressively synthesised and developed here into what is surely one of the most innovative and intriguing accounts of political obligation currently on offer. Her book repays careful study, and any adequate reply would itself have to take the form of a book. * Diane Jeske, Jurisprudence *