significant lit

• The Republic by Plato
• The Republic is considered to be one of the most influential pieces ever written

  Written around 380 BCE
• The Republic observes justice in man and politics and discusses the role of the philosopher in society
• Many of the intellectual concepts contained in The Republic are still discussed today
• The Republic is also an important historical document that provides historians with a snapshot of Greece at the time of its writing
• The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels
• The Communist Manifesto details the class struggle in society and traces its beginnings in history
• The Communist Manifesto highlights the problems of capitalism and capitalist production and how these structures impact the political and societal landscape
• The Rights of Man by Thomas Paine
• The Rights of Man argues that political revolution is acceptable when a government fails to protect the natural rights of its citizens
• The Rights of Man was written as a defense of the French Revolution
• The Rights of Man challenges societal institutions that don't benefit the nation overall, including monarchies and aristocracies
• Common Sense by Thomas Paine
• Common Sense was published anonymously in 1776
• Common Sense supported the Americans in their fight for independence from the British during the American Revolution
• Common Sense encouraged the people in the American Colonies to resist leaders from Great Britain and push for an egalitarian government
• Common Sense is one of the all-time best-selling American titles
• Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville
• Democracy in America was originally meant to be an observation of the American prison system
• Democracy in America is a look at American society and institutions overall
• Democracy in America discusses the reasons why American democratic equality exists and thrived at the time of writing
• The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli
• The Prince is considered one of the first works of modern political philosophy
• The Prince offers advice on how aspiring leaders can survive and thrive in the political landscape
• The Prince is one of the most unabashed meditations on political power and what is required to make it last
• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass
• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is considered the most famous of pieces written by former slaves
• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass is one of the most influential texts during the abolitionist movement in the United States
• Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass recounts his life as a slave on his way to freedom
• On Liberty by John Stewart Mill
• On Liberty is considered a foundational text for modern liberal political thought
• On Liberty applies ethical utilitarianism to society and state governance
• On Liberty argues that more importance should be placed on the consequences of actions as they relate to the interests of others than one's own interests
• The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith
• The Wealth of Nations describes how and what builds a nation's wealth

  Published in 1776
• The Wealth of Nations is largely viewed as the foundational text for classical economics
• The Wealth of Nations explores the economic system and suggests that a free market is able to automate and regulate itself
• The Wealth of Nations suggests that the functions of the economic system are only limited by the privileges given to certain members within the economy
• Orientalism by Edward Said
• Orientalism is primarily a work of postcolonial cultural studies