Get it? Leo Straiss and the Crisis of Modernity
Date of Award
2004
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelors
Department
Humanities
First Advisor
Berggren, Douglas
Keywords
Strauss, Leo, Political Philosophy, Crisis of Modernity
Area of Concentration
Philosophy
Abstract
Leo Strauss is a political philosopher whose work is unclear, ambitious, controversial, and politically influential. A number of scholarly articles and books take it as their only task to clarify what Strauss actually said and believed. My first two chapters are descriptive efforts of this sort. Chapter one begins by introducing Strauss and his unorthodox position in academia, and ends with an articulation of Strauss's infamous declaration of the Crisis of Modernity. Chapter two attempts an articulation of Strauss's solution to the crisis, which involves a quasi-return to Platonic thought. The third and final chapter contains two parts: a Rortian critique of Strauss's anti-historicism and a suggestion that Strauss's project is a Socratic ruse.
Recommended Citation
Sosnoff, Eric, "Get it? Leo Straiss and the Crisis of Modernity" (2004). Theses & ETDs. 3458.
https://digitalcommons.ncf.edu/theses_etds/3458