Sir Robert Filmer (15881653) and the Patriotic Monarch: Patriarchalism in Seventeenth-Century Political Thought

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This book studies the patriarchalist theories of Sir Robert Filmer (1588-1653) in the context of early modern English and European political cultures. Making use of unexplored primary material and adopting an innovative contextual approach, Cuttica provides a long-overdue account of an often referred-to but largely misunderstood thinker. By focusing on Filmer's most important writing, Patriarcha (written in the 1620s-30s but published in 1680), this monograph rethinks some crucial issues in the reading of political history in the seventeenth century. Most importantly, it invites new reflections on the theory of patriarchalism and gives novel insights into the place of patriotism in the development of English political discourse and identity. Thanks to its originality in both approach and content, this volume will be of interest to historians of early modern England as well as scholars of political thought. -- .

Reviews

Cutticas book offers an accessible guide to Filmers thought useful for students of intellectual history.

Cutticas book is a very good case study, which hopefully will change the perception of Filmers theory, which until now has been seen through the lenses of its critic, John Locke.

In this splendid study, Cesare Cuttica uses contextual and biographical methods to enhance our understanding of Sir Robert Filmer's intellectual life and his contribution to political debates in seventeenth-century England.
This book can be highly recommended and deserves to be widely read.

Cesare Cutticas work is the most comprehensive and convincing criticism of such an interpretation.
This is undoubtedly a brilliant study of Filmers political thought.

This extremely rich book is a major contribution to our knowledge of Filmer , and more broadly of patriarchy in the seventeenth century , primarily in England.
[Pierre Lurbe; RSEAA XVII-XVIII 70 (2013)]

Cuttica succeeds in presenting his reader with innovative, clear and well-argued information based on his contextualisation and biographical methods. In this way, he provides the reader with new insights and contributes significantly to our understanding of seventeenth-century English intellectual and political history. It is a major contribution to current studies of political thought.

...Cuttica has given us a Filmer with a new significance, and that itself is an unexpected and most welcomed contribution.

Author Bio

'Cesare Cuttica is Lecturer in British History in the Department of Anglo-American Studies (DEPA), Universit Paris 8-Vincennes and he is a member of the Sussex Centre for Intellectual History, University of Sussex