Some works of philosophy and political theory have developed into foundational texts for our modern moral and political sensibilities. In Lincoln-Douglas debate, we have adopted a core argument set that is largely derived from these texts. Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Immanuel Kant, and John Stuart Mill are giants of Enlightenment Era philosophy. It is not surprising that you see their major arguments applied to just about every LD resolution.

Our goal with this volume is to guide you through reading and interpreting the works of these thinkers. While secondary sources will be a valuable part of your research, we believe that reading the original texts in this volume is an important part of your LD Debate education. First, reading the original works often helps you to understand the context of different arguments or quotations from the text. For example, sometimes John Locke uses the term “property” to mean things people possess like estates and personal goods. Other times he uses the term more broadly to mean anything to which someone is entitled, including the rights to life and liberty. Reading or hearing quotations out of context can obscure these meanings. Moreover, reading an original work helps you to understand the whole arch of a philosopher’s argument. If you don’t understand that Hobbes is a materialist (as he discusses in the early sections of Leviathan), it is impossible to understand why he thinks the State of Nature is so dangerous. So, reading the original work will help you to understand these philosophies more fully and clearly.

Second, debaters often have very inaccurate understandings of these texts. Reading and comprehending the original work will help you correct these misunderstandings and exploit your opponents’ failure to prepare. How many times have you heard somebody say something like, “Well, What Kant really said was…” only to have them describe the argument in a wildly inaccurate way? Don’t rely on hearsay to piece together information about these important arguments – go right to the source. You will also have a chance to look for caveats or conditions that thinkers often place on their positions, which will help you correct counter-intuitive or potentially radical implications to common positions.