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  • Book
  • © 2017

Technology and the End of Authority

What Is Government For?

Palgrave Macmillan

Authors:

  1. Jason Kuznicki

    1. Cato Institute, Washington, USA

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  • Surveys the discipline of mainstream political philosophy using tools that grow from modern libertarianism

  • Incisively criticizes authoritarian thinking and commonly received views in political theory

  • Connects advancements in technology with projections for the future of the state and political authority

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Table of contents (13 chapters)

  1. Front Matter

    Pages i-x
    PDF

  3. A Too-Brief History of Political Theory

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 7-7
      PDF

    2. The Ancient State and the Myth of Marathon

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 9-30

    3. The Ancient Dissenters

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 31-38

    7. The Modern Omnipotent State

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 147-183

  4. Toward a New Theory of the State

    1. Front Matter

      Pages 185-185
      PDF

    2. The Structures of Political Theory

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 187-198

    3. The State Is a Bundle

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 199-208

    4. Some Objections to the Theory

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 209-220

    5. The Falsification of State Action

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 221-237

    7. On Trade as a Central Feature of Society

      • Jason Kuznicki
      Pages 253-265

  5. Back Matter

    Pages 267-285
    PDF
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About this book

This book provides a critical survey of Western political philosophy from a classical liberal perspective, paying particular attention to knowledge problems and the problem of political authority. Its central argument is that the state is a tool for solving a historically changing set of problems, and that, as a tool, the state is frequently deficient on both moral and practical grounds. Government action can be considered as a response to a set of problems, all of which may conceivably be solved in some other manner as well. The book examines in particular the relationship between the state and technology over time. Technological developments may make the state more or less necessary over time, which is a consideration that is relatively new in the history of political philosophy, but increasingly important. The book is organized chronologically and concludes with an essay on trends in the history of political philosophy, as well as its surprisingly bright prospects for future development.





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Keywords

  • intellectual history
  • political philosophy
  • agnarchism
  • unrequited transfer
  • deontological libertarianism
  • libertarian
  • anarchism
  • government
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Authors and Affiliations

  • Cato Institute, Washington, USA

    Jason Kuznicki

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About the author

Jason Kuznicki is Research Fellow at the Cato Institute, USA, and editor of Cato Unbound. He obtained his PhD in intellectual history from Johns Hopkins University, USA.
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Bibliographic Information

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Access via your institution

Buy it now

eBook USD 29.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book USD 37.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Other ways to access

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