Thomas Hobbes and Carl Schmitt: Order, Myth, and the Politics of Concealment

Thomas Hobbes, the English 17 th century philosopher, and Carl Schmitt, Hitler's ''‚¬~crown jurist', a political thinker and author of an enigmatic book on Hobbes, are increasingly relevant today for two reasons. First, they address the problem of political order, so important when we witness failed states, the privatisation of war, and the rise of political violence that does not derive from the state. Secondly, they are both crucial sources for the use of mythology in politics; moreover, they address the key issue of our time, namely, the relation between politics and religion. This collection of important new essays addresses Hobbes and Schmitt as political thinkers, their importance for present-day politics and society, their conceptions of myth and politics, and Schmitt's use of Hobbes in (and some say against) the Third Reich. When myth, violence and revelation re-emerge as political forces, it is important to understand Hobbes's and Schmitt's answers to the problems of their time ''‚¬" and to those of ours.Tralau, Johan is the author of 'Thomas Hobbes and Carl Schmitt: Order, Myth, and the Politics of Concealment', published 2010 under ISBN 9780415462648 and ISBN 0415462649.