The Correspondence Volume I 1622-1659 [Hardcover]

Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) is one of the most important figures in the history of European thought. Although interest in his life and work has grown enormously in recent years, this is the first complete edition of his correspondence. The texts of the letters are richly supplemented with explanatory notes and full biographical and bibliographical information. This landmark publication sheds new light in abundance on the intellectual life of a major thinker.

Superb....The state of our knowledge has suddenly been transformed....We must be grateful not merely for the letters that remain but for the truly spectacular job that Dr. Malcolm has done in making them available. The concept of definitive scholarship has been made to seem almost paradoxical in these post-modern days. But research of the quality displayed in these volumes reminds us that the ideal is by no means wholly out of reach. --Quentin Skinner,New York Review of Books

In these two thick volumes, we witness yet another aspect of Malcolm's prodigious gifts....We are presented with a comprehensive and meticulous example of scholarship. --The Times

One can feel nothing but gratitude for Malcolm's labours and admiration at their outcome. Hobbe's philosophy will, for the first time, have a real editor, and also one day, we can now hope, a real author. --Times Literary Supplement

These two volumes constitute the first collection of Hobbe's known correspondence, and their publication is therefore an important literary and philosophical event....They open a window onto many aspects of the 17th century world, anyone interested in history, literature, politics, philosophy, and the history of science will find them utterly absorbing....Interest in Hobbes has been steadily reviving in recent years, and Malcolm's magnificent edition of his correspondence will help to spur that process. --Financial Times

The fluency and elegance oflsj