14471
Seminar
Leo Strauss - Jewish Thought and Political Crisis
Reimund Leicht
Additional information / Pre-requisites
The seminar will concentrate on a reconstruction of the formation of Strauss’ intellectual formation during his early years before WWII. Parts of his major works from this period will be read in class. The course will be taught in English, but most of the texts are also available in original versions in German. The seminar will also be attended online by students of the Hebrew University Jerusalem. close
Comments
Leo Strauss (1899–1973) was an influential political philosopher and one of the most original interpreters of Jewish philosophy. His thought in both fields was deeply influenced by the experience of political crisis that characterized the Weimar Republic and German Jewry in the first decades of the 20th century. Starting his academic career with the study of a critic of Enlightenment and a research project on Spinoza, Strauss soon moved on to study Maimonides and other medieval Jewish and Arabic philosophers. Later in his life, his interests shifted more towards classical authors of European political thought. During his later years in the United States, Strauss became a controversial and influential critic of liberalism. At the same time, his theories about Maimonides’ philosophy and his distinction between “esoteric” and “exoteric” writing shaped whole generations of scholars on Jewish philosophy. Acquaintance with Strauss’ thought is a gateway to both, the interpretation of major aspects of medieval Jewish philosophy and to an important chapter in 20th century political philosophy and the philosophy of Judaism. close
16 Class schedule
Regular appointments
Thu, 2025-10-16 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-10-23 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-10-30 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-11-06 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-11-13 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-11-20 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-11-27 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-12-04 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-12-11 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2025-12-18 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2026-01-08 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2026-01-15 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2026-01-22 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2026-01-29 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2026-02-05 14:00 - 16:00
Thu, 2026-02-12 14:00 - 16:00