Books
Tocqueville: A Very Short Introduction
– Oxford University Press, 2010.Excerpt: In view of Tocqueville’s criticisms of philosophy, it may seem paradoxical and presumptuous to call him a philosopher. But he calls himself a “new kind of liberal,” and he sets forth a new liberalism that he has rethought. In Democracy in… More
Manliness
– Yale University Press, 2006. Italian trans., Virilità, Rizzoli, 2006.Excerpt: Today the very word manliness seems quaint and obsolete. We are in the process of making the English language gender-neutral, and manliness, the quality of one gender, or rather, of one sex, seems to describe the essence of the enemy we are… More
A Student’s Guide to Political Philosophy
– Intercollegiate Studies Institute, 2001.Excerpt: Political Philosophy is found in great books—those by Plato, Aristotle, Locke, Rousseau and others of the highest rank—and in books by professors. You should spend much more time with the great authors than with the professors, and you should use… More
Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America
– a new translation with introduction (with Delba Winthrop) University Of Chicago Press (November 1, 2000)Machiavelli’s Virtue
– University Of Chicago Press; Reprint edition (March 25, 1998)Excerpt: Machiavelli’s political science has not received the attention it deserves. All commentators are attracted, with a force they often seem not to understand, by the question of his notion of virtue: is it a compromise with evil or is it innocent?… More
Niccolò Machiavelli, Discourses on Livy
– a new translation with introduction, University of Chicago Press, 1996.America’s Constitutional Soul
– The Johns Hopkins University Press; Reprint edition (March 1, 1993)Excerpt: When it comes to American politics, I am an amateur. I love America at its best, or even at its most characteristic: “only in America.” Perhaps this kind of love ought to qualify me as a professional, because it requires one to learn what… More
Machiavel L’art de la guerre
– Introduction, Flammarion, 1991.Taming the Prince: The Ambivalence of Modern Executive Power
– The Free Press, 1989; paperback edition, Johns Hopkins University Press, 1993. The Johns Hopkins University Press; Reprint edition (April 1, 1993)Excerpt: To understand the modern doctrine of executive power, we need to know, at least approximately, what executive power is. It might at first seem best to go directly to the thing and to ignore opinions about it. For executive power is universally agreed… More
Machiavelli’s Florentine Histories
– A new translation with introduction, Princeton University Press, 1988.Essays
Trump Leaves the Scene on a Dark Note
– Harvey Mansfield, "Trump Leaves the Scene on a Dark Note," City Journal, January 13, 2021.Donald Trump is leaving the scene as he entered it, playing the demagogue—an old term from the political science of Plato and Aristotle; it is their reproach to democracy. The demagogue is one who “acts for” the demos, giving a point to its attacking… More
Interview with Hansong Li
– "Interview with Harvey Mansfield by Hansong Li," Athwart, June 8, 2020.Hansong Li interviews Mansfield about the major themes of his career. Excerpt: Hansong Li: What is political philosophy, and how does political theory inform political practice? Harvey Mansfield: Political philosophy, I would understand as the raising of… More
Harvey Mansfield on Bernie Sanders
– "Bernie and the Democrats," City Journal, March 28, 2020.Harvey Mansfield analyzes Bernie Sanders’ candidacy and what it says about the Democratic party and our two party system. Excerpt: After Super Tuesday, Bernie Sanders was no longer the front-runner for the Democratic nomination. Within four days of… More
Our Polarized Parties Dimly Seen
– "Our Polarized Parties Dimly Seen," National Affairs, Winter: 2020.Excerpt: By various measures, America’s political parties now have a high degree, perhaps an excess, of polarization. Mainstream political science has difficulty understanding this condition because political science now tends to begin from the notion… More
The Theory Behind My Disinvitation
– "The Theory Behind My Disinvitation," The Wall Street Journal, April 14, 2019.Harvey Mansfield reflects on his recent disinvitation from Concordia University and what it reveals about intolerance in the university today. —– Recently I was disinvited from giving a commencement address at the small Liberal Arts College within… More
Delba Winthrop on Aristotle, Democracy, and Political Science
– "A Missive from Harvey Mansfield," Harvard Magazine, December 10, 2018.Harvey Mansfield writes in Harvard Magazine on his late wife Delba Winthrop‘s work, Aristotle: Democracy and Political Science. — MY LATE WIFE, Delba Winthrop, submitted her doctoral dissertation to the Harvard government department in 1974. She… More
Interview with Harvey Mansfield (French) on “Manliness”
– "Interview with Harvey Mansfield on Manliness," Laure Mandeville, Le Figaro, November 27, 2018.Par Laure Mandeville Mis à jour le 27/11/2018 à 11h07 | Publié le 26/11/2018 à 19h33 GRAND ENTRETIEN – Figure du conservatisme américain, l’universitaire critique un féminisme déconstructeur qui nie la réalité des différences entre… More
Stuck in the Middle with Virtue
– Harvey Mansfield, "Stuck in the Middle with Virtue," Weekly Standard, May 11, 2018.Harvey Mansfield reviews Leslie Rubin’s America, Aristotle, and the Politics of a Middle Class. Excerpt: Here is a fine comparison of America’s founders with Aristotle on the value of a middle class. Aristotle wrote the first treatise on politics,… More
The Interview: Harvey Mansfield
– "Q & A with Harvey Mansfield," Boston Magazine, August: 2017.Harvey Mansfield interviewed in Boston Magazine (August 2017). Much has changed since Harvey Mansfield arrived at Harvard in 1949. The university went coed and campus politics have drifted left. Yet Mansfield, the famously outspoken conservative professor… More
The Vulgar Manliness of Donald Trump
– Harvey Mansfield, "The Vulgar Manliness of Donald Trump," Commentary, August 14, 2017.The most striking aspect of the rise and reign of Donald Trump has been his unabashed display of vulgarity and the ease (so far) with which he gets away with it. “Vulgar,” a term of condescension, is not often heard in democracies, where it most applies.… More
Multimedia
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Liberal Democracy as a Mixed Regime
– "Liberal Democracy as a Mixed Regime," Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: May 4, 2020.Harvey Mansfield joined Bill Kristol to discuss his difficult but important essay, “Liberal Democracy as a Mixed Regime.”
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield on Montesquieu’s Spirit of the Laws
– Harvey Mansfield (Interview 19), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: February 24, 2020.In this episode, Mansfield introduces the major themes of Montesquieu’s 1748 masterwork, L’Esprit des lois.
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield on Freedom of Speech and Higher Education
– Harvey Mansfield (Interview 18), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: August 26, 2019.In this release, Mansfield discusses the state of freedom of speech and freedom of inquiry in higher education.
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield XVII
– Harvey Mansfield (Interview 17), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: June 17, 2019.An in-depth discussion of Alexis de Tocqueville’s masterwork, Democracy in America.
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield XVI
– Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield XVI - Harvey Mansfield (Interview 16), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: December 31, 2018.In this release, Harvey Mansfield discusses what we can learn from Aristotle about democracy and the relationship of philosophy and politics. The release discusses the book Aristotle: Democracy and Political Science, written by the late Delba Winthrop.
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield XV
– Harvey Mansfield (Interview 14), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: September 8, 2018.In this Conversation, Harvey Mansfield reflects on The Federalist and why it should be read seriously as a great work on politics. Mansfield’s discussion calls our attention to the subtlety and complexity of the argument of The Federalist, as a whole, and… More
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield XIV
– Harvey Mansfield (Interview 14), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: December 17, 2017.In this Conversation, Mansfield explains the connection between the thought of Alexis de Tocqueville and Machiavelli. In this Conversation, Harvey Mansfield considers the connection between the thought of Alexis de Tocqueville and Niccolò Machiavelli. In… More
Machiavelli on Necessary Evil
– Harvey Mansfield, "Machiavelli on Necessary Evil," University of Notre Dame, November 11, 2017Harvey Mansfield spoke on “Machiavelli on Necessary Evil” at the University of Notre Dame, part of the Notre Dame Center for Ethics and Culture fall 2018 conference.
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield XIII
– Harvey Mansfield (Interview 13), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: August 14, 2017.Bill Kristol interviews Harvey Mansfield about Jonathan Swift (1667–1745) and particularly his masterwork, Gulliver’s Travels. In this Conversation, Mansfield provides an in-depth interpretation of Swift’s writing, which Mansfield calls “essentially… More
Conversations with Bill Kristol: Harvey Mansfield XII
– Harvey Mansfield (Interview 12), Conversations with Bill Kristol, Released: April 24, 2017.Bill Kristol interviews Harvey Mansfield about the Senate’s confirmation hearings for Neil Gorsuch, an event that “turned out to be a lesson in politics. You were learning from people actually in politics about the issue: What’s the relationship… More
Teaching
Harvard Faculty Speeches, 1975-2006
View pdf version The speeches reported here were given by Harvey C. Mansfield over 31 years to meetings of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences. They have been edited by him in 2012. They are based on faculty minutes and on his notes, made at the times of… More
Courses Taught by Harvey C. Mansfield
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY, 1960–1962 Political Science 209a, The Political Philosophy of Hegel Political Science 144a, British Government Political Science 293, The Political Philosophy of Burke Political Science 110a, Introduction to Political… More