The Blackwell Guide to Social and Political Philosophy brings together a collection of newly commissioned essays which examine fundamental issues in social and political theory. Written by leading social and political philosophers, each essay provides a map to the history of the issue at hand and a judicious assessment of the main arguments that have been brought to bear upon that issue.

The Blackwell Guide to Social and Political Philosophy brings together a collection of newly commissioned essays which examine fundamental issues in social and political theory. Written by leading social and political philosophers, each essay provides a map to the history of the issue at hand and a judicious assessment of the main arguments that have been brought to bear upon that issue.

Notes on Contributors ixIntroduction: Social and Political Philosophy - Sorting Out the Issues 1Robert L. SimonPart I Core Principles and the Liberal Democratic State1 Political Obligation and Authority 17A. John Simmons2 Liberty, Coercion, and the Limits of the State 38Alan Wertheimer3 Justice 60Christopher Heath Wellman4 Equality 85Richard J. Arneson5 Preference, Rationality, and Democratic Theory 106Ann E. CuddPart II Liberalism, Its Critics, and Alternative Approaches6 Marx's Legacy 131Richard W. Miller7 Feminism and Political Theory 154Virginia Held8 Liberalism and the Challenge of Communitarianism 177James P. Sterba9 Liberal Theories and their Critics 197William NelsonPart III Pluralism, Diversity, and Deliberation10 Deliberative Democracy 221James S. Fishkin11 Citizenship and Pluralism 239Daniel M. Weinstock12 The New Enlightenment: Critical Reflections on the Political Significance of Race 271A. Todd Franklin13 Religion and Liberal Democracy 292Christopher J. EberleSelect Bibliography 319Index 321