Presents a collection of essays and previously unpublished writings that look at the philosophical aspects of political science, including Marxian philosophy and its transformation following the emergence of totalitarianism. Reprint In The Promise of Politics, Hannah Arendt examines the conflict between philosophy and politics. In particular, she shows how the tradition of Western political thought, which extends from Plato and Aristotle to its culmination in Marx, failed to account for human action. The concluding section of the book, Introduction into Politics,” examines an issue that is as timely today as it was when Arendt first wrote about it fifty years ago-the modern prejudice against politics. When politics is considered as a means to an end that lies outside of itself, argues Arendt, when force is used to create freedom,” the very existence of political principles is imperiled. Introduction vii Jerome Kohn Socrates 5(35) The Tradition of Political Thought 40(23) Montesquieu's Revision of the Tradition 63(7) From Hegel to Marx 70(11) The End of Tradition 81(12) Introduction into Politics 93(108) Epilogue 201(4) Index 205