Tyranny from Ancient Greece to Renaissance France

by Orest Ranum

Overview

This Palgrave Pivot examines how prominent thinkers throughout history, from ancient Greece to sixteenth-century France, have perceived tyrants and tyranny. Ancient philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle were the first to build a vocabulary for tyrants and the forms of government they corrupted. Thirteenth century analyses of tyranny by Thomas Aquinas and John of Salisbury, revived from Antiquity, were recast as short observations about what tyrants do. They claimed that tyrants govern for their own advantage, not for the people. Tyrants could be usurpers, increase taxes, and live in luxury. The list of tyrannical actions grew over time, especially in periods of turmoil and civil war, often raising the question: When can a tyrant be legitimately deposed or killed? In offering a brief biography of these political philosophers, including Machiavelli, Erasmus, More, Bodin, and others, along with their views on tyrannical behavior, Orest Ranum reveals how the concept of tyranny has been shaped over time, and how it still persists in political thought to this day.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783030431846
Publisher:	Springer International Publishing
Publication date:	05/28/2020
Edition description:	1st ed. 2020
Pages:	178
Product dimensions:	5.83(w) x 8.27(h) x (d)

About the Author

Orest Ranum is professor emeritus at the Johns Hopkins University, Maryland, USA, and the author of several books including Artisans of Glory (1980), The Fronde, a French Revolution (1993), and Les bienfaits, la gratitude et l'action politique (2018)

Table of Contents

Part I Antique Understandings of Tyranny
1. The Athens of Plato, Aristotle, and Xenophon
2. Tyranny and Despotism in Plato’s Republic and Laws
3. Aristotle on Tyranny in the Politics
4. Xenophon on Tyranny in Hiero
5. Seneca the Younger on Tyranny in On Mercy
Part II Three Medieval Commentators on Tyranny
6. Mimetic Impulses and Early Receptions
7. John of Salisbury on Tyranny in Policraticus
8. Aquinas on Tyranny in the Regime of Princes and in the Summa Theologica
9. Giles of Rome on Tyranny in His Regime of Princes
Part III Recovering Plato and Aristotle on Tyranny in the Renaissance
10. Imminence of the Past
11. Machiavelli on Tyranny in the Prince and the Discourses
12. Seyssel on Tyranny in the Monarchy of France
13. Guillaume Budé on Tyranny in the Education of the Prince
14. Erasmus on Tyranny in the Education of a Christian Prince
15. Thomas More on Tyranny in the History of Richard III
Part IV A Time of Troubles in France, 1570–1590
16. The Valois Monarchy in Political Thought and Political Theology
17. Tyranny in Hotman’s Franco-Gallia
18. Étienne de la Boétie on Tyranny in Voluntary Servitude
19. Bèze on Tyranny in the Right of Magistrates
20. Bodin on Tyranny in the Six Books of the Republic
21. The Vindiciae contra tyrannos on Tyranny
22. Mariana on Tyranny
23. Jean Boucher on Tyranny in the True History of Henry de Valois