This powerfully conceptualized book is both a rich intellectual history of two hundred years of American constitutional theory and an original philosophical inquiry into the possibility of self-government. Legitimate government in the United States means self-government. Yet Americans also believe that their government must be constrained by a Constitution that is now two hundred years old. Paul W. Kahn sees the development of constitutional theory as a continuous effort to resolve this conflict between self-government and history.
Rejecting the conventional idea that constitutional...

"A brilliantly innovative and provocative work of pathfinding dimensions."-Robert M. Ireland, Journal of the Early Republic "No scholar of the American constitution or American history can afford not to read this book-at least twice."-Herbert A. Johnson, Law and History Review "Kahn is clearly a scholar of great intelligence and creativity."-Scott D. Gerber, Journal of American History In this ground-breaking book, Kahn uses modern cultural theory to investigate America's most profound political myth: the belief that the rule of law is rule by the people. Kahn explores the elements of the...

In Out of Eden, Paul W. Kahn offers a philosophical meditation on the problem of evil. He uses the Genesis story of the Fall as the starting point for a profound articulation of the human condition. Kahn shows us that evil expresses the rage of a subject who knows both that he is an image of an infinite God and that he must die. Kahn's interpretation of Genesis leads him to inquiries into a variety of modern forms of evil, including slavery, torture, and genocide.

Kahn takes issue with Hannah Arendt's theory of the banality of evil, arguing that her view is an instance...

The terrorist attacks of 9/11, followed by the expose of torture in US detainment camps, dampened hopes for a peaceful world in the 21st century and challenged the belief that humanity was on a course of progress toward rational deliberation, the rule of law, and human rights. This book investigates the reasons for the resort to violence.

This provocative book is both a rich intellectual history of 200 years of American constitutional theory and a major contribution to that theory. Paul Kahn argues that self-government is impossible within the constraints placed on government by the Constitution, and that constitutional theory-which attempts to reconcile self-government and history-will never achieve its goal. "I do not know of another book that participates in the constitutional dialogue with the mixture of historical perspective and acute critical eye displayed in this book. It demonstrates sweep, originality, careful...

Academic philosophy may have lost its audience, but the traditional subjects of philosophy--love, death, justice, knowledge, and faith--remain as compelling as ever. To reach a new generation, Paul W. Kahn argues that philosophy must take up these fundamental concerns as we find them in contemporary culture. He demonstrates how this can be achieved through a turn to popular film.

Discussing such well-known movies as Forrest Gump (1994), The American President (1995), The Matrix (1999), Memento (2000), The History of Violence (2005), Gran Torino...