Slavery in Early Modern Philosophy 1500-1765: Essential Readings

Included here are many previously unpublished and newly translated texts that discuss various aspects of slavery and represent many different perspectives. Some treat slavery as a purely theoretical issue, others explicitly examine transatlantic slavery, the enslavement of American Indians, or other specific historical institutions. Some criticize slavery, others defend it. Some focus on ethical or political questions, others on epistemological or psychological ones. Some explore the general permissibility of enslavement, others the morality of slave rebellions or the obligation to pay reparations. Some are by widely known authors -such as Thomas Hobbes, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, John Locke, Jean-Jacques Rousseau, and Adam Smith-and others may be unfamiliar to most scholars but are at least as important for the history of philosophical debates about slavery. Including an introduction by volume editor Julia Jorati, this volume - along with its companion volume covering the late 18th century - will interest scholars and students exploring the history of philosophical thinking about slavery.