Hidden within every political debate—in legislatures, on radio talk shows, and even in coffee shops—is an implicit philosophy of the polity, or a particular understanding of the limits and possibilities of human life in community. Harvard University's Harvey C. Mansfield, one of America's preeminent political theorists, here provides a compelling account of the philosophers who have shaped our fundamental views of politics through the ages. In an era when "partisanship" is deplored, Mansfield shows that taking sides in disputes about the common good is a permanent part of politics; and it is the place to begin in the quest for wisdom concerning the human things.