Excellence Unleashed Machiavelli's Critique of Xenophon and the Moral Foundation of Politics

"When it comes to the qualities characteristic of contemporary academic writing, lucidity is in the underrepresented minority. Paul J. Rasmussen's prose exemplifies this virtue as it explores two authors who delight us even as they quicken our thoughts. His crisp formulations make familiar points seem new, and he then goes beyond them by establishing such new connections as the relationship between Machiavelli's critique of Xenophon and his critique of Christianity. This tour de force is accurately described by its own title."

Paul J. Rasmussen holds a Ph.D. in political theory from the University of Toronto. He has taught at Baruch College, the University of Michigan-Dearborn, and California State University-San Bernardino. He is currently working on a book about the history of patriotism.