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Analysis and History of Political Thought

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2009

PETER J. STEINBERGER
PETER J. STEINBERGER*
Affiliation:
Reed College
*
Peter J. Steinberger is the Robert H. and Blanche Day Ellis Professor of Political Science and Humanities and Dean of the Faculty, Reed College, Portland, OR 97202 (peter.steinberger@reed.edu).
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Abstract

Criticisms of Quentin Skinner's approach to the study of the history of political thought have generally failed to directly address the philosophical presuppositions on which Skinner himself relies. Those presuppositions involve, primarily, theories of language associated most closely with Austin, Searle, and Grice. An investigation of the uses that Skinner makes of philosophical pragmatics raises serious doubts about a number of his central claims. Moreover, those philosophical resources actually point toward a decidedly non-Skinnerian approach that focuses not primarily on discovering or reconstructing historical circumstances, but on uncovering and explicating structures of argumentation.

Type
Research Article
Information
American Political Science Review , Volume 103 , Issue 1 , February 2009 , pp. 135 - 146
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 2009

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