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Category Archives: Research Notes

Political Animals: Bees

Sunday, June 15, 2008

The work known as Feminine Monarchie was first published in 1609 by Charles Butler went through a number of editions during the course of the seventeenth century in England. The original 1609 edition was entitled The Feminine Monarchie or a Treatise Concerning Bees, and the Due Ordering of Them: Wherein the Truth, Found Out by [...]

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To-Do List

Sunday, June 8, 2008

(1) Learn French again having all but lost what little French I learnt during French immersion in elementary and middle school. They always said two things in high school: (1) you’ll regret not taking more math and (2) you’ll regret not staying with French. Both ended up being true. I’ll likely order this book for [...]

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Collegial

Thursday, May 22, 2008

I was in Toronto on Tuesday to take part in small seminar/workshop around a draft of the first half of my supervisor’s book in progress on Montesquieu. (Given that the book isn’t under contract and it is still in draft, I don’t think I should say much about its contents at this time – but [...]

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Autonomy

Monday, January 21, 2008

Why is it the case that I’m persuaded by – or, at least, amenable to – arguments regarding the autonomy of the political (Schmitt) or the (relative) autonomy of the state (certain readings of Marx), but I’m not particularly persuaded by – or, at least, amenable to – arguments regarding the autonomy of the law [...]

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Of Interest

Thursday, November 1, 2007

“Exploring Ways to Shorten the Ascent to a Ph.D.” from the New York Times. The only good news from this article is that I’ll be younger than the average (American) Ph.D. at time of graduation. Figures for Canada are comparable to those given for the US in the article (except Canadians tend to be about [...]

Also filed in CFPs, Conferences, Lectures and Journals | | Comments (0)

‘The Most Radical Historicist’

Saturday, September 8, 2007

It seems Leo Strauss is referring to one of two people – both of whom he greatly admired: either Heidegger or Schmitt. Which is the more likely candidate? It is only at this point that we come face to face with the serious antagonist of political philosophy: historicism. After reached its full growth historicism is [...]

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Carl Schmitt in English

Thursday, August 23, 2007

The bibliography has been updated to include the forthcoming Constitutional Theory volume and Bendersky’s recent translation of the ‘Fourth’/Second interrogation at Nuremberg. It is available here.

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Notes on Coffee

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Carl Schmitt and Jurgen Habermas are, without a doubt, the most (in)famous political theorists to come from Germany since since Marx. (One might want to include Leo Strauss, but I don’t think he wrote anything of substance on coffee.) As is well-known – many of us get our introductions to Habermas via his Structural Transformation [...]

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Recent Papers of Interest

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Both from the current (35(4) August 2007) issue of Political Theory. Machiavelli’s Political Trials and “The Free Way of Life” John P. McCormick University of Chicago, Illinois This essay examines the political trials through which, according to Machiavelli’s Discourses, republics should punish magistrates and prominent citizens who threaten or violate popular liberty. Unlike modern constitutions, [...]

Also filed in State, Sovereignty & Violence | | Comments (0)

Schmitt and Kierkegaard

Friday, June 22, 2007

Has anyone written on Schmitt and Kierkegaard? There are subtle references to Kierkegaard throughout Schmitt’s body of work, but especially in Political Theology. In his book on Hobbes, Schmitt speaks of “the sickness unto death” of Hobbes’ mortal god.

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