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Articles by Michał Kuź
The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin's and Leo Strauss's methodological approaches to... more The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin's and Leo Strauss's methodological approaches to the study of the history of political thought, in particular, the Western political thought. The paper concludes that in both cases the thinkers stray away from the mainstream, which is currently represented by contextualism. However, in their dissenting voices both authors take very different routes. Voegelin focuses on political symbols which are grounded in the metaphysical experience of their creators , and Strauss focuses on the perennial question of philosophy and classical, discursive rationality as the criterion of philosophical inquiry. They also differ in their opinions on the role of the political philosopher. For Voegelin, the philosopher is a defender or a co-creator of political creeds. For Strauss s/he is mainly the educator of politically savvy youths and, above all, the defender of philosophy as the most noble pursuit of the mind. The paper concludes by pointing out the importance and prominence of both thinkers.
European Legacy, Nov 24, 2014
Alexis de Tocqueville’s political thought is often seen as inconsistent for offering two apparent... more Alexis de Tocqueville’s political thought is often seen as inconsistent for offering two apparently dissimilar theories of revolution. The first is universal democratisation, understood as a social phenomenon and a grand revolutionary change; the second sees revolution as the logical continuation and radicalisation of the preceding regime. The following question arises: was Tocqueville inconsistent in his principal works? I argue that this was not the case and that the two processes are complementary elements in Tocqueville’s model, which combines the ancient cyclical science of regime change with modern theories of revolutionary progress. What Tocqueville offers is a powerful political theory with considerable predictive power. Tocqueville, I consequently claim, should be viewed as a theorist of revolution rather than as a theorist of democracy per se.
Poniższy artykuł stanowi refleksję nad zastosowaniem teoretycznej kategorii symboli politycznych ... more Poniższy artykuł stanowi refleksję nad zastosowaniem teoretycznej kategorii symboli politycznych w ujęciu Erica Voegelina do badań politologicznych oraz praktycznych problemów współczesnego prawa i polityki. Oryginalny wkład badawczy tego tekstu stanowi przy tym prześledzenie rozwoju koncepcji symboli politycznych u Voegelina i skupienie się na wczesnych, rzadko opisywanych tekstach tegoż autora. Konkluzją jest obserwacja, iż voegelinowska kategoria symboli politycznych to narzędzie znacznie powiększające nasze możliwości poznawcze i otwierające nowe pola dialogu społecznego. Kategoria ta przezwycięża bowiem nieprzystający już w pełni do współczesnej polityki podziała na religie i ideologie, a równocześnie unika problemów charakterystycznych dla myśli politycznej Carla Schmitta i pozwala na bardziej szczegółową analizę niż upraszczające huntingtonowskie pojęcie cywilizacji.
The article analyzes the key aspects of the ideological message of Polish city movements in the s... more The article analyzes the key aspects of the ideological message of Polish city movements in the specific circumstances provided by the Polish party system. The paper notes the innovativeness of the ideas of Polish city movements. At the same time, the paper concludes that the city movements return to the space-centered, non-party, civic conception of politics typical of the philosophy of Jean Jacques Rousseau. The paradox of innovativeness combined with referring to the past is explained by a conceptual category of “revolutionary retrogression” proposed by Kazimierz Kelles-Krauz.
Studia Politologiczne - Political Science Studies, Jul 2013
This study examines the correlation between democracy and extreme confidence in governments in 54... more This study examines the correlation between democracy and extreme confidence in governments in 54 states. The aim of the study is to test the hypothesis that the greater the number of citizens who display extreme confidence in government, the worse the quality of democracy. This finding argues against some
of the propositions of Robert Putnam. The OLS regression analysis confirms the negative correlation between the variables, which indicates that the extreme levels of support for government do not correlate with the development of democracy.
Horizons of Politics - Horyzonty Polityki
Book Reviews by Michał Kuź
![Research paper thumbnail of Review of Francis Fukuyama's "The Origins of Political Order" [Polish]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/32114961/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Selected Essays by Michał Kuź
![Research paper thumbnail of The Dawn of Democracy and Middle Ages 2.0 [Zmierzch Demokracji i Średniowiecze 2.0 - in Polish]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/35874990/thumbnails/1.jpg)
]("Teologia Polityczna" and "Rzeczy Wspólne", Apr 2013
National Review Online, Aug 2012
![Research paper thumbnail of Principalities without Princes: Why do Post-Communist Kleptoctratic Policies Fail [Księstwa bez książąt. Dlaczego postkomunistyczne kleptokracje nie radzą sobie z polityką?- in Polish]](https://attachments.academia-assets.com/35875145/thumbnails/1.jpg)
](Rzeczy Wspólne, Jan 2013
Michał Kuź "Lew" i "Lis" a sprawa polska Myśl polityczna Niccolò Machiavellego wciąż stanowi wyzw... more Michał Kuź "Lew" i "Lis" a sprawa polska Myśl polityczna Niccolò Machiavellego wciąż stanowi wyzwanie dla nowoczesnego republikanizmu. Jest tak zwłaszcza w przypadku młodych, demokratycznych republik. Polska jak i większa część Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej to, na przykład, obszar w którym według klasycznej typologii elit Machiavellego-Pareto dominują z reguły koterie kleptokratycznych, ale wyjątkowo sprawnych "lisów". Przeciwstawiają się nim od czasu do czasu ryczące "lwy" o rodowodzie opozycyjno-narodowym, nie posiadają jednak lisiej giętkości, więc władzę na krótko zdobytą dość szybko oddają. Nadal brak sprawnych przywódców, którzy byliby zdolni swą przebiegłość zaprząc do służby racji stanu. Zwłaszcza w przypadku polskiego republikanizmu bardzo wczesne i niefrasobliwe odrzucenie nauk Machiavellego urasta do rangi grzechu pierworodnego naszej myśli politycznej, który wciąż waży na losach kraju. Czym są polityczne elity?
On me by Michał Kuź
Drafts by Michał Kuź
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000
... Roguslska, Agnieszka. 2002. „Staszek Staszewski -- Poeta Podziemia Ery Gomułkowskiej” [„Stasz... more ... Roguslska, Agnieszka. 2002. „Staszek Staszewski -- Poeta Podziemia Ery Gomułkowskiej” [„Staszek Staszewski -- The Poest of Political Undergroud of the Gomulka Era”]. Biultetyn Instytutu Pamięci Narodowej vol. 10, no. 21: 58-64. Roszkowski, Wojciech. 1992. ...
... 6 Page 7. saw behind the dead eyes of Dolores ‒ the woman whom he had killed. Here the metaph... more ... 6 Page 7. saw behind the dead eyes of Dolores ‒ the woman whom he had killed. Here the metaphor of sight is present again. ... And this picture is not to be overlooked as Woody Allem himself deemed it the "be best film he has ever made" (Schembri 2009). ...
The mainstream literature on revolutions points to the conclusion that within about five years fr... more The mainstream literature on revolutions points to the conclusion that within about five years from the onset of a revolution the probability that a given country will be involved in a military interstate dispute rises dramatically. However, there are no clear conclusions regarding the probability of becoming an instigator or a target of a conflict. The aim of my project is to examine which variables determine the exact type of military actions that the post-revolutionary state becomes involved in. My working hypothesis is that the geopolitical and economic factors, which shape a given states influence within its immediate international surrounding, play a pivotal role. Thus I arrive at a twofold typology of revolutions. The " hegemonic revolutions " (China, Russia, France) are generally more rare, however, when they do occur they create a powerful incentive on the part of the local hegemon to reshape its whole regional environment and thus become an instigator of military conflicts. The " peripheral revolutions " , on the other hand, are seen by local hegemons as a threat to their influence and thus make the post-revolutionary regimes a likely target of aggression. Interestingly, the same set of variables that contribute to a revolutionary overflow in the international environment create strategic incentives for both spreading revolutions and trying to quenching them depending on the geopolitical situation. In my work I draw both from the recent quantitative databases on revolutions and present case studies ncluding recent conflicts in Ukraine.
ABSTRACT The main aim of my paper is to examine the path-dependency of political transformations ... more ABSTRACT
The main aim of my paper is to examine the path-dependency of political transformations in East Central Europe and other Post-Soviet states with a special focus on Poland and the ECE states as defined by Piotr S. Wandycz (Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Slovakia). The hypotheses I adopt states that the varying pace of reforms and consolidation of the democracy in the post-communist period can be explained with the help of Maurice’s Halbwachs’ notion of “collective memory” and Eric Voegelin’s theory of “political symbols”. I will also focus on some of the most recent developments in East Central Europe.
Papers by Michał Kuź
Oficyna Wydawnicza AFM, 2019
From introduction: "Donald Trump’s victory in 2016 shattered a complacency of the global lib... more From introduction: "Donald Trump’s victory in 2016 shattered a complacency of the global liberal consensus, already shaking in Europe in the wake of the immigration crisis in 2015 and its political consequences. His victory was quickly defi ned by the liberal-left elites, because of the United States superpower status among modern democracies, as the most consequential and disruptive populist phenomenon among other already visible in Europe, subverting not only the post-Soviet liberal consensus of the “end of history” shaped after 1989, but more generally questioning the principles of the post-1945 model of social and political development of liberal democracy. We may also risk an opinion that Trump’s victory, together with other victories of the so called “populist movements” in such countries as Great Britain, Hungary, Poland or Italy with a corresponding breaking of the consensual politics in many European countries, including the most, so it seemed, stable Germany, are truly important milestones in western political history for reasons not necessarily connected with the immediate changes in so far unquestionable concrete liberal policies taken for granted. They are also important because they suddenly deepened political divisions and stirred passions inside of particular societies leveling them to a nearly quasi-religious dimension."(...
The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin's and Leo Strauss's methodological approaches to... more The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin's and Leo Strauss's methodological approaches to the study of the history of political thought, in particular, the Western political thought. The paper concludes that in both cases the thinkers stray away from the mainstream, which is currently represented by contextualism. However, in their dissenting voices both authors take very different routes. Voegelin focuses on political symbols which are grounded in the metaphysical experience of their creators , and Strauss focuses on the perennial question of philosophy and classical, discursive rationality as the criterion of philosophical inquiry. They also differ in their opinions on the role of the political philosopher. For Voegelin, the philosopher is a defender or a co-creator of political creeds. For Strauss s/he is mainly the educator of politically savvy youths and, above all, the defender of philosophy as the most noble pursuit of the mind. The paper concludes by pointing out the importance and prominence of both thinkers.
European Legacy, Nov 24, 2014
Alexis de Tocqueville’s political thought is often seen as inconsistent for offering two apparent... more Alexis de Tocqueville’s political thought is often seen as inconsistent for offering two apparently dissimilar theories of revolution. The first is universal democratisation, understood as a social phenomenon and a grand revolutionary change; the second sees revolution as the logical continuation and radicalisation of the preceding regime. The following question arises: was Tocqueville inconsistent in his principal works? I argue that this was not the case and that the two processes are complementary elements in Tocqueville’s model, which combines the ancient cyclical science of regime change with modern theories of revolutionary progress. What Tocqueville offers is a powerful political theory with considerable predictive power. Tocqueville, I consequently claim, should be viewed as a theorist of revolution rather than as a theorist of democracy per se.
Poniższy artykuł stanowi refleksję nad zastosowaniem teoretycznej kategorii symboli politycznych ... more Poniższy artykuł stanowi refleksję nad zastosowaniem teoretycznej kategorii symboli politycznych w ujęciu Erica Voegelina do badań politologicznych oraz praktycznych problemów współczesnego prawa i polityki. Oryginalny wkład badawczy tego tekstu stanowi przy tym prześledzenie rozwoju koncepcji symboli politycznych u Voegelina i skupienie się na wczesnych, rzadko opisywanych tekstach tegoż autora. Konkluzją jest obserwacja, iż voegelinowska kategoria symboli politycznych to narzędzie znacznie powiększające nasze możliwości poznawcze i otwierające nowe pola dialogu społecznego. Kategoria ta przezwycięża bowiem nieprzystający już w pełni do współczesnej polityki podziała na religie i ideologie, a równocześnie unika problemów charakterystycznych dla myśli politycznej Carla Schmitta i pozwala na bardziej szczegółową analizę niż upraszczające huntingtonowskie pojęcie cywilizacji.
The article analyzes the key aspects of the ideological message of Polish city movements in the s... more The article analyzes the key aspects of the ideological message of Polish city movements in the specific circumstances provided by the Polish party system. The paper notes the innovativeness of the ideas of Polish city movements. At the same time, the paper concludes that the city movements return to the space-centered, non-party, civic conception of politics typical of the philosophy of Jean Jacques Rousseau. The paradox of innovativeness combined with referring to the past is explained by a conceptual category of “revolutionary retrogression” proposed by Kazimierz Kelles-Krauz.
Studia Politologiczne - Political Science Studies, Jul 2013
This study examines the correlation between democracy and extreme confidence in governments in 54... more This study examines the correlation between democracy and extreme confidence in governments in 54 states. The aim of the study is to test the hypothesis that the greater the number of citizens who display extreme confidence in government, the worse the quality of democracy. This finding argues against some
of the propositions of Robert Putnam. The OLS regression analysis confirms the negative correlation between the variables, which indicates that the extreme levels of support for government do not correlate with the development of democracy.
Horizons of Politics - Horyzonty Polityki
"Teologia Polityczna" and "Rzeczy Wspólne", Apr 2013
National Review Online, Aug 2012
Rzeczy Wspólne, Jan 2013
Michał Kuź "Lew" i "Lis" a sprawa polska Myśl polityczna Niccolò Machiavellego wciąż stanowi wyzw... more Michał Kuź "Lew" i "Lis" a sprawa polska Myśl polityczna Niccolò Machiavellego wciąż stanowi wyzwanie dla nowoczesnego republikanizmu. Jest tak zwłaszcza w przypadku młodych, demokratycznych republik. Polska jak i większa część Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej to, na przykład, obszar w którym według klasycznej typologii elit Machiavellego-Pareto dominują z reguły koterie kleptokratycznych, ale wyjątkowo sprawnych "lisów". Przeciwstawiają się nim od czasu do czasu ryczące "lwy" o rodowodzie opozycyjno-narodowym, nie posiadają jednak lisiej giętkości, więc władzę na krótko zdobytą dość szybko oddają. Nadal brak sprawnych przywódców, którzy byliby zdolni swą przebiegłość zaprząc do służby racji stanu. Zwłaszcza w przypadku polskiego republikanizmu bardzo wczesne i niefrasobliwe odrzucenie nauk Machiavellego urasta do rangi grzechu pierworodnego naszej myśli politycznej, który wciąż waży na losach kraju. Czym są polityczne elity?
SSRN Electronic Journal, 2000
... Roguslska, Agnieszka. 2002. „Staszek Staszewski -- Poeta Podziemia Ery Gomułkowskiej” [„Stasz... more ... Roguslska, Agnieszka. 2002. „Staszek Staszewski -- Poeta Podziemia Ery Gomułkowskiej” [„Staszek Staszewski -- The Poest of Political Undergroud of the Gomulka Era”]. Biultetyn Instytutu Pamięci Narodowej vol. 10, no. 21: 58-64. Roszkowski, Wojciech. 1992. ...
... 6 Page 7. saw behind the dead eyes of Dolores ‒ the woman whom he had killed. Here the metaph... more ... 6 Page 7. saw behind the dead eyes of Dolores ‒ the woman whom he had killed. Here the metaphor of sight is present again. ... And this picture is not to be overlooked as Woody Allem himself deemed it the "be best film he has ever made" (Schembri 2009). ...
The mainstream literature on revolutions points to the conclusion that within about five years fr... more The mainstream literature on revolutions points to the conclusion that within about five years from the onset of a revolution the probability that a given country will be involved in a military interstate dispute rises dramatically. However, there are no clear conclusions regarding the probability of becoming an instigator or a target of a conflict. The aim of my project is to examine which variables determine the exact type of military actions that the post-revolutionary state becomes involved in. My working hypothesis is that the geopolitical and economic factors, which shape a given states influence within its immediate international surrounding, play a pivotal role. Thus I arrive at a twofold typology of revolutions. The " hegemonic revolutions " (China, Russia, France) are generally more rare, however, when they do occur they create a powerful incentive on the part of the local hegemon to reshape its whole regional environment and thus become an instigator of military conflicts. The " peripheral revolutions " , on the other hand, are seen by local hegemons as a threat to their influence and thus make the post-revolutionary regimes a likely target of aggression. Interestingly, the same set of variables that contribute to a revolutionary overflow in the international environment create strategic incentives for both spreading revolutions and trying to quenching them depending on the geopolitical situation. In my work I draw both from the recent quantitative databases on revolutions and present case studies ncluding recent conflicts in Ukraine.
ABSTRACT The main aim of my paper is to examine the path-dependency of political transformations ... more ABSTRACT
The main aim of my paper is to examine the path-dependency of political transformations in East Central Europe and other Post-Soviet states with a special focus on Poland and the ECE states as defined by Piotr S. Wandycz (Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Slovakia). The hypotheses I adopt states that the varying pace of reforms and consolidation of the democracy in the post-communist period can be explained with the help of Maurice’s Halbwachs’ notion of “collective memory” and Eric Voegelin’s theory of “political symbols”. I will also focus on some of the most recent developments in East Central Europe.
Oficyna Wydawnicza AFM, 2019
From introduction: "Donald Trump’s victory in 2016 shattered a complacency of the global lib... more From introduction: "Donald Trump’s victory in 2016 shattered a complacency of the global liberal consensus, already shaking in Europe in the wake of the immigration crisis in 2015 and its political consequences. His victory was quickly defi ned by the liberal-left elites, because of the United States superpower status among modern democracies, as the most consequential and disruptive populist phenomenon among other already visible in Europe, subverting not only the post-Soviet liberal consensus of the “end of history” shaped after 1989, but more generally questioning the principles of the post-1945 model of social and political development of liberal democracy. We may also risk an opinion that Trump’s victory, together with other victories of the so called “populist movements” in such countries as Great Britain, Hungary, Poland or Italy with a corresponding breaking of the consensual politics in many European countries, including the most, so it seemed, stable Germany, are truly important milestones in western political history for reasons not necessarily connected with the immediate changes in so far unquestionable concrete liberal policies taken for granted. They are also important because they suddenly deepened political divisions and stirred passions inside of particular societies leveling them to a nearly quasi-religious dimension."(...
This study examines the correlation between democracy and extreme confidence in governments in 54... more This study examines the correlation between democracy and extreme confidence in governments in 54 states. The aim of the study is to test the hypothesis that the greater the number of citizens who display extreme confidence in government, the worse the quality of democracy. This finding argues against some of the propositions of Robert Putnam. The OLS regression analysis confirms the negative correlation between the variables, which indicates that the extreme levels of support for government do not correlate with the development of
The purpose of this article is to capture one of the key features of the political thought that d... more The purpose of this article is to capture one of the key features of the political thought that developed in the United States of America. Assuming that the USA’s political culture is indeed exceptional, the author attempts to find the common denominator that would reflect the singularity of the American political mind. The author states that such a feature is the radical anti-historicality of the American mode of thinking about politics. It is a phenomenon that is deeply-rooted in the political and spiritual past of the United States and seems to be crucial because it never developed to such an extent in other traditions. Furthermore, even today to a large extent it defines both the American left and right. It is also very much present in academic discussion as well as in ordinary political activities. By anti-historicality the author means the rejection of the thesis that politics within a given society depends on that society’s past experience. The phenomenon defies simple norm...
It is widely accepted that revolutions, i.e. sudden and violent regime changes occurring beyond t... more It is widely accepted that revolutions, i.e. sudden and violent regime changes occurring beyond the established legal framework and supported by a significant portion of the society can increase the likelihood of becoming involved in an interstate conflict1. Two critical bodies of research on postrevolutionary conflicts are Maoz’s Domestic Sources of Global Change (1996: 71–124) and Stephen M. Walt’s Revolution and War (1996: 18–46). Both authors observe an increased likelihood of an interstate conflict following a revolution2. They also describe the struggle between established status-quo powers and new revolutionary regimes which seek to disturb the ‘balance of threat’ (Walt 1996: 19) in their vicinity. Current research, however, does not examine the relationship between a revolution and instigating a war versus becoming a target. The main research question is, thus, why do some revolutions lead to becoming a target of military operations and others to their initiation? One hypoth...
The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin’s and Leo Strauss’s methodological approaches to... more The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin’s and Leo Strauss’s methodological approaches to the study of the history of political thought, in particular, the Western political thought. The paper concludes that in both cases the thinkers stray away from the mainstream, which is currently represented by contextualism. However, in their dissenting voices both authors take very different routes. Voegelin focuses on political symbols which are grounded in the metaphysical experience of their creators, and Strauss focuses on the perennial question of philosophy and classical, discursive rationality as the criterion of philosophical inquiry. They also differ in their opinions on the role of the political philosopher. For Voegelin, the philosopher is a defender or a co-creator of political creeds. For Strauss s/he is mainly the educator of politically savvy youths and, above all, the defender of philosophy as the most noble pursuit of the mind. The paper concludes by pointing out the ...
The main aim of my paper is to examine the path-dependency of political transformations in East C... more The main aim of my paper is to examine the path-dependency of political transformations in East Central Europe and other Post-Soviet states with a special focus on Poland and the ECE states as defined by Piotr S. Wandycz (Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Slovakia). The hypotheses I adopt states that the varying pace of reforms and consolidation of the democracy in the postcommunist period can be explained with the help of Maurice’s Halbwachs’ notion of “collective memory” and Eric Voegelin’s theory of “political symbols”. I will also focus on some of the most recent developments in East Central Europe Introduction East Central European states form the central part of the Intermedium, a region that is placed between the Russia and Western Powers and two seas: the Baltic to north and the Black See to the south (See Friedman 2011, 122-141). The access to the region both from the West and from the East is not hindered by any major natural obstacle. This means that politically the EC...
President’s Trumps international agenda is often viewed as a part of a wider political shift, whi... more President’s Trumps international agenda is often viewed as a part of a wider political shift, which undermines the current liberal global order and places more emphasis on the nation state as an international player.1 Events such as Brexit, Matteo Renzi’s lost referendum, the general strengthening of far-right and populist parties are often cited in this context. The phenomenon itself seems to be quite considerable in scope. The politicians described as populists or nationalists are still not a dominant force in most of the elections in developed countries. However, a new divide that moves beyond the post-war left-right division can be clearly observed and variously described. This study will propose the notions of two ideological camps: globalism and localism (with a special focus on national-localism). It will also examine the fi rst year of president Trump’s presidency using the historical analysis tools proposed by Harold James and Stephen Skowronek.
This article focuses on the question of the role of informal and semiformal power elites in the m... more This article focuses on the question of the role of informal and semiformal power elites in the meaning of Janine Wedel’s anthropological theories1 and their impact on politics in Poland and the EU in a comparative perspective. A particularly interesting topic raised in the text is the question whether the wide availability of EU funds can be regarded as a source of easily available ‘rent’ for which the elites described by Wedel compete today. This article provides a theoretical contribution partly supported by empirical data. However, further, extensive research is necessary, which could reveal in the future the scope of activities of informal ‘shadow elites’ and the impact they exert on the political life in modern Poland, the European Union and globally2.
Przegląd Politologiczny, 2018
The paper compares several selected aspects of political culture in the US and in the EU, and pre... more The paper compares several selected aspects of political culture in the US and in the EU, and presents the fundamental ideas that have led to the emergence of these two federal political bodies, as according to Montesquieu’s typology, both the EU and the US are federal republics. The similarities and differences become even more apparent when comparing the Constitution of the United States and the Lisbon Treaty, which is to constitute the constitutional foundation of the European Union. Such a comparison reveals that the EU and the US are divided by a dialectical difference. This means that these two political constructs apply diametrically opposite solutions to essentially similar political problems. Theoreticians continue to discuss which model of federal republic is better, and whether the EU will have to adopt American solutions, or whether the US will europeanize itself. The author attempts to present the arguments of both sides in this discussion. In his opinion, though, eithe...
Przegląd Politologiczny, 2016
The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin's and Leo Strauss's methodological approaches to... more The paper summarizes the nature of Eric Voegelin's and Leo Strauss's methodological approaches to the study of the history of political thought, in particular, the Western political thought. The paper concludes that in both cases the thinkers stray away from the mainstream, which is currently represented by contextualism. However, in their dissenting voices both authors take very different routes. Voegelin focuses on political symbols which are grounded in the metaphysical experience of their creators, and Strauss focuses on the perennial question of philosophy and classical, discursive rationality as the criterion of philosophical inquiry. They also differ in their opinions on the role of the political philosopher. For Voegelin, the philosopher is a defender or a co-creator of political creeds. For Strauss s/he is mainly the educator of politically savvy youths and, above all, the defender of philosophy as the most noble pursuit of the mind. The paper concludes by pointing out the importance and prominence of both thinkers.
Athenaeum Polskie Studia Politologiczne, 2016