The Philosophical Theory of the State

An influential examination of the state and social theory, published in 1899, by one of Britain's leading liberal philosophers.

Bernard Bosanquet (1848–1923) was a neo-Hegelian British philosopher who had an interest in contemporary social theory. He examines ideas about the state, and the people who live in it, in this influential work, which was first published in 1899 and ran to four editions by 1923.After more than a decade teaching ancient Greek history and philosophy at University College, Oxford, British philosopher and political theorist Bernard Bosanquet (1848–1923) resigned from his post to spend more time writing. He was particularly interested in contemporary social theory, and was involved with the Charity Organisation Society and the London Ethical Society. He saw himself as a radical in the Liberal Party, and at a theoretical level he was a 'collectivist', considering the individual to be a part of a larger social organism. He thought the state should be in harmony with the general will, and that going beyond it would lead to repression. Bosanquet's political ideas are explained in this influential work, which was published in 1899 and ran to four editions by 1923. Bosanquet begins with the theory of state, and then addresses sociological and philosophical ideas about politics before examining the idea of 'will'.