Quotessence
Home / Quotes / Quote by Leo Strauss

Quote by Leo Strauss

“The belief that value judgments are not subject, in the last analysis, to rational control, encourages the inclination to make irresponsible assertions regarding right and wrong or good and bad. One evades discussion of serious issues by the simple device of passing them off as value problems, whereas, to say the least, many of these conflicts arose out of man's very agreement regarding values.”

Quote by Leo Strauss

Book:What is Political Philosophy? And Other Studies
Create image

Work

What is Political Philosophy? And Other Studies

This volume brings together a series of studies that investigate the core questions and methods of political philosophy. The essays consider how political philosophy differs from political science, ideology, and historical inquiry, and they examine the works of key thinkers to illustrate the enduring problems and tensions within the field. The collection addresses topics such as the nature of justice, the role of the philosopher in society, and the challenges of applying philosophical principles to political life, offering a reflective analysis of the discipline's purpose and limits. more

Author

Leo Strauss
Leo Strauss

Leo Strauss was a prominent philosopher born on September 20, 1899, and died on October 18, 1973. His thoughts were deeply influenced by classical philosophy and German philosophy, especially by Martin Heidegger's philosophical ideas. Strauss's main contribution lies in his reinterpretation of political philosophy, emphasizing the close connection between political philosophy and moral philosophy. more

You May Also Like

“Our understanding of the thought of the past is liable to be the more adequate, the less the historian is convinced of the superiority of his own point of view, or the more he is prepared to admit the possibility that he may have to learn something, not merely about the thinkers of the past, but from them.”

MayPastUnderstandingViewsPossibilityPreparedPoint Of ViewConvincedThinkerHistorianSuperiorityAdequateLiable
Book:What is Political Philosophy? And Other Studies
Create image

“When speaking of a "body of knowledge" or of "the results of research," e.g., we tacitly assign the same cognitive status to inherited knowledge and to independently acquired knowledge. To counteract this tendency a special effort is required to transform inherited knowledge into genuine knowledge by revitalizing its original discovery, and to discriminate between the genuine and the spurious elements of what claims to be inherited knowledge.”

BodyResultsEffortSpecialElementsResearchDiscoveryClaimsOriginalsGenuineTendenciesCognitive
Book:What is Political Philosophy? And Other Studies
Create image

“We somehow believe that our point of view is superior, higher than those of the greatest minds either because our point of view is that of our time, and our time, being later than the time of the greatest minds, can be presumed to be superior to their times; or else because we believe that each the greatest minds was right from his point of view, but not, as he claims, simply right.”

MindBelieveViewsHigherClaimsPoint Of ViewSuperiorsOur Time
Book:Liberalism Ancient and Modern
Create image

“Men are constantly attracted and deluded by two opposite charms: the charm of competence which is engendered by mathematics and everything akin to mathematics, and the charm of humble awe, which is engendered by meditation on the human soul and its experiences. Philosophy is characterized by the gentle, if firm, refusal to succumb to either charm.”

IfsMenHumansTwoSoulPhilosophyMeditationOppositesMathematicsHumbleFirmGentleCharmAweCompetenceHuman SoulRefusalDeludedTwo Opposites
Book:An Introduction to Political Philosophy: Ten Essays
Create image