Melamed & Rosenthal (eds.) Spinoza’s TTP reviewed by Theo Verbeek

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Op “Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews” vandaag een bespreking door Theo Verbeek van Yitzhak Y. Melamed and Michael A. Rosenthal (eds.), Spinoza's Theological-Political Treatise: A Critical Guide, Cambridge University Press, 2010, 294pp., $89.00 (hbk),  ISBN 9780521882293 – books,google – NDPR.

           

Hij begint aldus over de TTP: “Written in a difficult and elusive style, packed with Biblical quotations, switching on almost every page (sometimes even within a single phrase) from a theological to a philosophical register, badly organized and — let us admit it — without a clear and recognizable focus, the work constitutes a great challenge. No one should believe those who claim that in this work Spinoza has a clear message. Even the notion of libertas philosophandi ('freedom to philosophize'), which, according to the full title, would be the book's central concern, is not free from ambiguity. In any case, it is far from obvious in what way that notion provides an organizing principle for the book as a whole. Indeed, one of the questions could be to what extent the book is a whole, given the fact that Spinoza presents the book as a collection of 'some treatises' (aliquot dissertationes). As a result, a 'critical guide' is needed.”
Zo, dat is zwaar geschut dat wordt afgevuurd…