Montesquieu: The Spirit of the Laws (Cambridge Texts in the History of Political Thought) (Paperback)

~ Charles de Montesquieu (Author), Anne M. Cohler (Editor), Basia Carolyn Miller (Editor), Harold Samuel Stone (Editor) "Laws, taken in the broadest meaning, are the necessary relations deriving from the nature of things; and in this sense, all beings have their laws:..." (more)
Key Phrases: secundum anni, old specie, regum francorum, Saint Louis, Gregory of Tours, Louis the Pious (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The Spirit of the Laws is without question one of the central texts in the history of eighteenth-century thought, yet there has been no complete scholarly English language edition since 1750. This lucid translation renders Montesquieu's problematic text newly accessible to a fresh generation of students, helping them to understand why Montesquieu was such an important figure in the early enlightenment and why The Spirit of the Laws was such an influence on those who framed the American Constitution. Fully annotated, this edition focuses on Montesquieu's use of sources and his text as a whole, rather than on those opening passages toward which critical energies have traditionally been devoted.

Language Notes

Text: English, French (translation) --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 808 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; annotated edition edition (September 29, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521369746
• ISBN-13: 978-0521369749
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.8 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #200,680 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Important book in the history of ideas, August 27, 2002

By	a lawyer (Toronto, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews

There are mainly two reasons why Montequieu's book is important. One is for his ideas, which still have relevance for current political issues, such as separation of church and state. The second is that it represents an important historical milestone in political thought. The real bonus is that, in the translation, his work reads in a way that is both intellectually engaging, by which I mean he gets you thinking about the issues, and also engaging (if entertaining is not quite the right word) as a series of philosophical perspectives delivered in a direct way generally free of jargon.
The most interesting part of his book for me was at the outset, in his comparison of despotism, republics and democracy.
The really important aspect of his book is that so many of the threshold policitical issues that he discusses are still live issues. How much should the state intervene? What constitutes good laws? What parts of life in a political society are the business of the state?

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a must read for the world's democracy advocates, February 14, 1999

By	"knudy" (new york city) - See all my reviews

an understanding of Montesquieu is critical for today's emerging democracies, in that he was one of the first to recognize the importance of securing the liberty of the governed with the aid of reason, such as by constitutional design and by the rule of law. The probelm is that there is a caveat to his theory: democracy may not be the best form of government for every country.

21 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For students of U.S. Constitution, December 30, 1998

By A Customer

Our founding fathers studied Montesquieu's writings of pure democracy and rejected that form of government for our constitution. This book should be read by every student in high school,so they might have a comparison to U.S. Constitution vs other forms of ancient gov- ernments. Our founders were nothing less than brillant to invent a democratic republic;whereby allowing the citizens to rule, but not as a mob.

Ron Steele Moab Utah