the best political science books works on political thought, theory, political system, international relations, international politics and comparative politics. If you plan to study politics in college, get a head start on these books now! You will need to be able to demonstrate your interest in your subject in order to put together a successful college application, and they will be required reading for any undergraduate course related to politics. also, help with this list of books if you are a political science researcher.
list of the best political science books:-
every year, thousands of political books are published on the market, but only a select book has meaning. This list of books every student and professor of politics should read covers everything from political science.
You are reading: Good political science books
1. plato’s republic:-
Plato is the earliest Western philosopher from whose output complete works have been preserved. The Republic of Plato is a masterpiece of insight and feeling, the finest of the Socratic dialogues, and one of the great books of Western culture. At least twenty-five of his dialogues are extant, ranging from fewer than twenty to more than three hundred pages in length. For their combination of dramatic realism, poetic beauty, intellectual vitality, and emotional power they are unique in Western literature.
about the translator
robin waterfield is a distinguished translator and author. Previously Consulting Editor for Collins-Harvill, his translations of Plato include Philebus (1982), Theatetus (1987), Early Socratic Dialogues (1987), and Symposium (WC, Jan 1994).
key features
- titles spanning time and space, from the pre-socratic philosophers to jane austen
- leading academics wrote valuable critical introductions to introduce the texts, perfect for beginning or experienced readers. veterans
- additional explanatory notes, chronologies and bibliographies breathe new life into some of history’s greatest texts
read more and buy with amazon
2. on liberty by john stuart mill:-
John Stuart Mill is one of the few indisputably ‘classic’ authors in the history of political thought. On Liberty, first published in 1859, has become celebrated as the most powerful defense of the freedom of the individual, and it is now widely regarded as the most important theoretical foundation for Liberalism as a political creed. Similarly, his The Subjection of Women, a powerful indictment of the political, social, and economic position of women, has become one of the cardinal documents of modem feminism. This edition brings together these two classic texts, plus Mill’s posthumous Chapters on Socialism, his somewhat neglected examination of the strengths and weaknesses of various forms of Socialism. The Editor’s substantial Introduction places these three works in the context both of Mill’s life and of nineteenth-century intellectual and political history and assesses their continuing relevance. There is also a Chronology of Mill’s life, a Bibliographical Guide, and a Biographical Appendix of names cited in the texts.
As in the case of liberty, the values of human dignity, liberty, and self-development provide the basis for Mill’s attack on existing social arrangements, and it is these values that underlie his comprehensive but largely uncompromising analysis. ultimately skeptical of what has become liberalism’s great rival political theory in the modern world, namely, socialism. Mill’s chapters on socialism constitute the first part of a projected book on the subject that remained unfinished at his death. Partly for that reason, it has remained one of Mill’s less celebrated works, but it approaches several of the issues raised by the other two books reprinted in this volume from a different angle. The three taken together provide a particularly accessible and compact introduction to what remains distinctive and attractive about Mill as a political thinker.
read more and buy with amazon
3.the human condition, by hannah arendt:-
This is a brilliant book that will change the way you think about the possibilities of politics and the potential for humans, acting together, to generate power and change their shared world. Writing in the depths of the Cold War, Arendt was prescient about the internal threats to the U.S. and also the potential that was realized thirty years later when the Iron Curtain crumbled.
hannah arendt (1906-1975) taught political science and philosophy at the new school for social research in new york and the university of chicago. Widely acclaimed as a brilliant and original thinker, her works include Eichmann on Jerusalem and The Human Condition.
read more and buy with amazon
4. anarchy, state and utopia by robert nozick:-
In this brilliant and widely acclaimed book, winner of the 1975 National Book Award, Robert Nozick challenges the most commonly held political and social positions of our age — liberal, socialist, and conservative.
Best read in conjunction with John Rawls’s “A Theory of Justice,” Nozick’s book is a classic of political thought. he advances a simple, elegant, and hard-to-argue libertarianism, one that forms a foundation for libertarian thought today. Whether you agree with him or not, this is essential reading for anyone trying to understand libertarian philosophy today.
about the author
5.the rule of law by ronald dworkin.
See Also: 10 Thought-Provoking Books Like The Giver – Capitalize My Title
“Refreshing and rewarding… Law’s Empire is Dworkin’s framework for the analysis of critical issues in law; and such are the elegance and power of the book that one who has read it may find it hard to return patiently to the stale and shallow categories…in which so much argument about the role of judges is nowadays conducted.”―Edwin M. Yoder, Jr., Washington Post Book World.
the great book on legal philosophy of the 20th century was hart’s “the concept of law”, but i would put this book at number two. it is beautifully written and meticulously crafted. there is much to learn from this book about the law and how to think creatively about any subject!.
06.democracy and education by john dewey (author), jo ann boydston (editor), dr. Sydney Hook Ph.D. (intro)
John Dewey’s classic work Democracy and Education is presented here in an authoritative edition with an introduction by Sidney Hook. Although Dewey’s publishing agreement called for him to write a “Textbook on the Philosophy of Education,” he said not long after it appeared that “Democracy and Education, in spite of its title, is the closest attempt I have made to sum up my entire philosophical position.” The Collected Works of John Dewey, 1882-1953, thirty-seven volumes divided into early works, middle works, and later works, plus index, includes all the books and articles published during John Dewey’s intellectual career from 1882 to 1952 as well as selected personal correspondence and posthumous publications. This definitive series makes accessible the distinctive thought of America’s national philosopher.
Can no serious student of twentieth-century American intellectual, social, or political history get along without the complete works of John Dewey? —Richard Rorty, Emeritus Professor of Comparative Literature and Philosophy, Stanford University Are the Complete Works the Indispensable Tool for Studying Lohn Dewey’s Thought? —Hilary Putnam, Professor Emeritus, Cogan University, Harvard University “The Complete Works of John Dewey is the essential resource for all serious students of education.” —ellen condliffe lagemann, charles warren professor of history of american education, harvard university jo ann boydston, director of the center for dewey studies from 1966 to 1993, is the general editor of the collected works of john dewey and the editor and author from several other works on dewey.
read more and buy with amazon
07.man, state and war by kenneth n. waltz
about the author
8.democracy in america by alexis de tocqueville
DEMOCRACY IN AMERICA (1835, 1840) has had the singular honor of being up to this very day the work to which political commentators and pundits of every stripe invariably refer when they seek to draw large conclusions about the society of the United States. In fact, so uncanny is Tocqueville’s insight, so accurate arc his predictions, that it often seems, as one reads his masterpiece, that this young French aristocrat is not merely describing the American identity, but actually helping to create it.
about the author
9. The Marx-Engels Reader by Robert C. tucker, karl marx, federico engels
A great collection of some of the well known and even a few lesser known works of the intelligent Marx and Engels. An essential book for an introduction to Marxist philosophy and ideology. The range within the collection is impressive and gives a breadth of understanding.
See Also: Existentialism Reading List – The Best 8 Books to Read | Philosophy Break