Written nearly fifty years ago, at a time when the world was still wrestling with the concepts of Marx and Lenin, 'The Illusion of the Epoch' is the perfect resource for understanding the roots of Marxism-Leninism and its implications for philosophy, modern political thought, economics, and history. As Professor Tim Fuller has written, this "is not an intemperate book, but rather an effort at a sustained, scholarly argument against Marxian views." Far from demonising his subject, Acton scrupulously notes where Marx's account of historical and economic events and processes is essentially accurate. However, Acton also points out that Marx is generally right about things that were already widely known and accepted in his own time and indeed had been long understood in the nineteenth century. On the other hand, Acton shows that in many cases Marx either is simply wrong or has stated his views so as to render his theories immune to disproof. Acton also explains why the embodiment of Marxist-Leninist theory in an actual social order would require coercive support if it were not, sooner or later, to collapse of its own contradictions.

"The publication of . . . this book is an intellectual event."--Alasdair MacIntyre One of the central problems in the history of moral and political philosophy since antiquity has been to explain how human society and its civil institutions came into being. In attempting to solve this problem philosophers developed the idea of natural law, which for many centuries was used to describe the system of fundamental, rational principles presumed universally to govern human behavior in society. By the eighteenth century the doctrine of natural law had engendered the related doctrine of natural rights, which gained reinforcement most famously in the American and French revolutions. According to this view, human society arose through the association of individuals who might have chosen to live alone in scattered isolation and who, in coming together, were regarded as entering into a social contract. In this important early essay, first published in English in this definitive translation in 1975 and now returned to print, Hegel utterly rejects the notion that society is purposely formed by voluntary association. Indeed, he goes further than this, asserting in effect that the laws brought about in various countries in response to force, accident, and deliberation are far more fundamental than any law of nature supposed to be valid always and everywhere. In expounding his view Hegel not only dispenses with the empiricist explanations of Hobbes, Hume, and others but also, at the heart of this work, offers an extended critique of the so-called formalist positions of Kant and Fichte. "An invaluable translation . . . of a document in his fruitful Jena period which is crucial to our understanding of Hegel's maturity. This essay on natural law throws much light on the "Phenomenology" soon to appear as well as the later "Philosophy of Right." It amounts to a philosophical declaration of independence for Hegel: his departure from the theological preoccupations of his youth on the one and the tutelage of Kant and Fichte on the other. "The Phenomenology of Spirit" will announce his independence from Schelling, too, and philosophy will henceforth play for him the role formerly held by religion in the life and destiny of a people."--J. Glenn Gray "It is an immense advantage to students of political philosophy in general, and to Hegel scholars in particular, to have Hegel's early essay on the scientific treatment of natural law available in English. . . . Acton's introduction supplies useful historical background and will assist those unacquainted with Hegel . . . to sort out the main argument."--Errol E. Harris

Although the market economy is not as unpopular now as when Acton wrote "The Morals of Markets, " the morality of buying and selling has long bothered man's conscience. Defenses of capitalism often establish its efficiency or rely on a "that is the way human nature is anyway" argument. This book asserts that a free market is a necessary condition for the pursuit of moral excellence. Its analysis of the relation between capitalism and moral virtue has not been superseded.The demise of Marxism and the moral bankruptcy of socialism throughout the world do not end the debate over capitalism. Acton's book is distinctive in discussing the "morals of markets" in a way that forms an essential addition--often missing--to the case to be made for free markets.Harry Burrows Acton (1908-1974) was Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh.David Gordon is a Senior Fellow at the Ludwig von Mises Institute.Jeremy Shearmur teaches political theory at the Australian National University.

"Lord Acton's essays on liberal Catholicism demonstrate the breadth and brilliance of his thought and the strength of his advocacy as the liberal intellectual of the last century."-- Professor S. W. Jackson, University of VictoriaVolume III focuses on the intersection of religion with moral and political issues. Also included are three important essays, "Human Sacrifice," "George Eliot's Life," and "Buckle's Philosophy of History." The last section is composed of nearly two hundred pages of excerpts from Acton's remarkable letters and unpublished notes.

Although the market economy is not as unpopular now as when Acton wrote "The Morals of Markets, " the morality of buying and selling has long bothered man's conscience. Defenses of capitalism often establish its efficiency or rely on a "that is the way human nature is anyway" argument. This book asserts that a free market is a necessary condition for the pursuit of moral excellence. Its analysis of the relation between capitalism and moral virtue has not been superseded.The demise of Marxism and the moral bankruptcy of socialism throughout the world do not end the debate over capitalism. Acton's book is distinctive in discussing the "morals of markets" in a way that forms an essential addition--often missing--to the case to be made for free markets.Harry Burrows Acton (1908-1974) was Professor of Moral Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh.David Gordon is a Senior Fellow at the Ludwig von Mises Institute.Jeremy Shearmur teaches political theory at the Australian National University.