In The Politics of Motion Professor Spragens gives an account of Hobbes as a naturalistic political philosopher. He argues that the philosophy of Hobbes is constituted by the "transformation" of an Aristotelian "paradigm," or model of motion, so as to be Aristotelian in some respects and anti-Aristotelian in others. Though this thesis seems an interesting one at first sight, in practice it is not enlightening. In order to support his thesis, Spragens overdoes the seeking of parallels to Hobbes in the work of Aristotle. His selection of passages from Aristotle is rather arbitrary, and it is not surprising that the resulting picture of Aristotle's philosophy is distorted. Spragens is more in his element with Hobbes, but his comments about recent interpretations of Hobbes' views are marred by a tailoring of them to suit his own needs. The originality of his own interpretation relies simply on the comparison and contrast with Aristotle, and it does not add up to a great deal. In retrospect it would be hard for the reader to refrain from concluding that The Politics of Motion is long on motion and short on politics. Spragens appears to believe that the structure of political theory can be best elucidated from the standpoint of supra-political "paradigms." His belief on this score remains a more or less pure affirmation unsupported by the kind of evidence it needs aside from appeal to authorities, chiefly Thomas Kuhn. It accordingly belongs to those sets of hypotheses which are neither refutable nor demonstrable, but draw their strength from mere assertion, as from time to time they are repeated with varying degrees of accuracy and candor. The candor with which Spragens' hypothesis is asserted indicates a strong conviction on his part. Whether this may serve to hearten his partisans without producing the evidence he needs for substantiating his hypothesis remains to be seen.

Aspects of Hobbes

Leon Krier hardly needs to be introduced to anyone who has a professional or academic interest in the discussions of architecture and urbanism of recent decades. An internationally established architect, architectural theorist and urban planner, he is well-known not only as the author of numerous architectural and urban design projects and master-plans, but also for his defense of what is sometimes called „neo-traditional” architecture and the values that were and continue to be associated with the role and aesthetics of the architecture of past centuries. Although he has been attacked for his non-conformist views and critical attitude towards radical modernism, Leon Krier remains an important figure in discussions of architecture and urbanism, and his interests overlap with present concerns for environment and sustainable future. The talk by the editor of the journal with Leon Krier is an attempt to discuss the flaws of contemporary architectural and urban practice as well as to indicate its root...

James G. Lennox

Papers

Ayn Rand and Objectivism