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political philosophy

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From: Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
Date: 20070301
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Branch of philosophy that analyzes the state and related concepts such as political obligation, law, social justice, and constitution. The first major work of political philosophy in the Western tradition was Plato 's Republic . Aristotle 's Politics is a detailed empirical study of political institutions. The Roman tradition is best exemplified by Cicero and Polybius . St. Augustine 's City of God began the tradition of Christian political thinking, which was developed by Thomas Aquinas . Niccolò Machiavelli studied the nature and limits of political power. Thomas Hobbes 's Leviathan (1651) ...

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