These essays are designed for students of political philosophy who are approaching the great texts of the past for the first time. Intended to help students find their way into the texts and get the most from them, while encouraging further exploration, the essays offer selectiveinterpretation of setting, form, and content in clear, straightforward language. Texts discussed are Plato's Republic, Aristotle's Politics, Augustine's City of God, Machiavelli's Prince and Discourses, Hobbes's Leviathan, Locke's Second Treatise of Government, and Rousseau's SocialContract.