The Political is a collection of readings by the most important political philosophers representing the six major schools of Continental philosophy: Phenomenology, Existentialism, Critical Theory, Poststructuralism, Postmodernism, and Postcolonialism.
Many of the selections, written by such notable thinkers as Arendt, Sartre, Habermas, Foucault, Lyotard, and Dussel, distill and exemplify the distinctive schools of Continental philosophy. Other selections, written by Iris Marion Young, Judith Butler, William McBride, Eduardo Mendieta, Simon Chambers, and David Ingram situate these primary readings in relation to their historical contexts and the contemporary world.

These commentaries encompass issues such as global justice and the fate of the nation-state; the use of state-sanctioned violence; the impact of group rights and identity politics on democratic governance; the relationship between governance, normativity, and power in constituting and restricting freedom; the connection between universal rights and substantive democratic policies; and the dialectic between revolutionary practice and institutional regimentation.

This is the first anthology of its kind devoted to emphasizing Continental political philosophy as an important area of study in its own right.