Rethinking Democracy for Post-Utopian Worlds PDF Download

Author: Jorge León Casero
Publisher: Springer Nature
ISBN: 3031534913
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 355

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Author: Jorge León Casero
Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
ISBN: 9783031534904
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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This book is both a conceptualization and detailed analysis of the current crisis in which modern utopian categories of political institutions find themselves, as well as a reflection and clarification of the new dangers and opportunities facing post-utopian politics in-the-making. Met with those who believe that no more utopian political projects are possible, the post-utopian movement maintains a non-fantastic or illusory character of being able to apply new great discourses and radically democratic historical narratives, while respecting both the autonomy and emancipation of individuals as plurality and the socio-cultural differences of communities. With this purpose in mind, the book is divided into five thematically differentiated sections: the new utopian categories beyond modern epistemes; the possibility of liberal utopian democracies without neoliberalism; the opportunities of socialist empowerments and insurgencies; the necessity of thinking in the space between two ages; andthe urgency to create eco-political post-utopias.

Author: Jiwei Ci
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 0674238184
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 433

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A respected Chinese political philosopher calls for the Communist Party to take the lead in moving China along the path to democracy before it is too late. With Xi Jinping potentially set as president for life, China’s move toward political democracy may appear stalled. But Jiwei Ci argues that four decades of reform have created a mentality in the Chinese people that is just waiting for the political system to catch up, resulting in a disjunction between popular expectations and political realities. The inherent tensions in a largely democratic society without a democratic political system will trigger an unprecedented crisis of legitimacy, forcing the Communist Party to act or die. Two crises loom for the government. First is the waning of the Communist Party’s revolutionary legacy, which the party itself sees as a grave threat. Second is the fragility of the next leadership transition. No amount of economic success will compensate for the party’s legitimacy deficit when the time comes. The only effective response, Ci argues, will be an orderly transition to democracy. To that end, the Chinese government needs to start priming its citizens for democracy, preparing them for new civil rights and civic responsibilities. Embracing this pragmatic role offers the Communist Party a chance to survive. Its leaders therefore have good reason to initiate democratic change. Sure to challenge the Communist Party and stir debate, Democracy in China brings an original and important voice to an issue with far-reaching consequences for China and the world.

Author: Andrew Gamble
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119554772
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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"There's never been a more pressing time to question every aspect of our inadequate democracy"- Polly Toynbee "This important book shows the many challenges democracy faces in a world of populism and radical digital change" - Margaret Hodge 2018 saw celebrations of the centenary of the Representation of the People Act which marked a decisive step towards full universal suffrage - this collection of essays explores the problems of democracy and suggests ways it might now be extended and deepened. Investigates if democracy is an unfinished revolution and if democratic politics is currently in retreat Demonstrates how democratic politics is once again under attack - this time from populist nationalists, authoritarian rulers and new forms of political communication Argues that if we lose the art of active citizenship, we will lose the freedoms and the rights which democracy has bestowed

Author: David M. Bell
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1317486714
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 189

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Over five hundred years since it was named, utopia remains a vital concept for understanding and challenging the world(s) we inhabit, even in – or rather because of – the condition of ‘post-utopianism’ that supposedly permeates them. In Rethinking Utopia David M. Bell offers a diagnosis of the present through the lens of utopia and then, by rethinking the concept through engagement with utopian studies, a variety of ‘radical’ theories and the need for decolonizing praxis, shows how utopianism might work within, against and beyond that which exists in order to provide us with hope for a better future. He proposes paying a ‘subversive fidelity’ to utopia, in which its three constituent terms: ‘good’ (eu), ‘place’ (topos), and ‘no’ (ou) are rethought to assert the importance of immanent, affective relations. The volume engages with a variety of practices and forms to articulate such a utopianism, including popular education/critical pedagogy; musical improvisation; and utopian literature. The problems as well as the possibilities of this utopianism are explored, although the problems are often revealed to be possibilities, provided they are subject to material challenge. Rethinking Utopia offers a way of thinking about (and perhaps realising) utopia that helps overcome some of the binary oppositions structuring much thinking about the topic. It allows utopia to be thought in terms of place and process; affirmation and negation; and the real and the not-yet. It engages with the spatial and affective turns in the social sciences without ever uncritically being subsumed by them; and seeks to make connections to indigenous cosmologies. It is a cautious, careful, critical work punctuated by both pessimism and hope; and a refusal to accept the finality of this or any world.

Author: Susan Buck-Morss
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 9780262523318
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 410

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This study develops the notion of dreamworld as both a poetic description of a collective mental state and an analytical concept. Stressing the similarites between East/West the book examines extremes of mass utopia, dreamworld and catastrophe.

Author: Leo Panitch
Publisher: NYU Press
ISBN: 1583676724
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336

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For years, intellectuals have argued that, with the triumph of capitalist, liberal democracy, the Western World has reached “the end of history.” Recently, however, there has been a rise of authoritarian politics in many countries. Concepts of post-democracy, anti-politics, and the like are gaining currency in theoretical and political debate. Now that capitalist democracies are facing seismic and systemic challenges, it becomes increasingly important to investigate not only the inherent antagonism between liberalism and the democratic process, but also socialism. Is socialism an enemy of democracy? Could socialism develop, expand, even enhance democracy? While this volume seeks a reappraisal of existing liberal democracy today, its main goal is to help lay the foundation for new visions and practices in developing a real socialist democracy. Amid the contradictions of neoliberal capitalism today, the responsibility to sort out the relationship between socialism and democracy has never been greater. No revival of socialist politics in the twenty-first century can occur without founding new democratic institutions and practices.

Author: Jonathan Luxmoore
Publisher: Gracewing Publishing
ISBN: 9780852446478
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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"The failure of the European Union's Constitutional Treaty has raised serious questions about the Continent's future. Christian churches are active in this debate, as social and cultural forces with influence and outreach. But questions are also being asked about the future of Christianity itself, in a region now deeply divided between competing outlooks and visions. Why has Christianity caused such passion? And what does the controversy say about the new Europe now being created - a secular, technocratic Europe, or a Europe more deeply united by shared norms and values?" "Rethinking Christendom explores the background to today's discussions, drawing on views and perspectives from East and West. It shows how Christianity became the essential badge of European-ness, and the universal reference point for societies drawn together by external threats and internal aspirations. It also demonstrates how, by asserting the individual's moral value, Christianity planted the seeds of democracy and human rights, pluralism and equality, and was fated, over time, to subvert and undermine unjust, dictatorial systems of rule." "While some Europeans see Christianity as a means of liberation, others view it as a barmier to freedom. This book is a plea for a realistic and informed understanding of Christianity's past, present and future role - in a region where all faiths, worldviews and philosophies can and should coexist in a mutual creative harmony."--BOOK JACKET.

Author: David Chandler
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1134147104
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 348

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This new volume moves beyond the limits of current debate to show how today’s foreign policy is increasingly about values rather than interests and why ethics are now playing a central role. Rather than counterposing interests and ethics, trying to find ‘hidden agendas’ or emphasizing the double-standards at play in ethical foreign policy, this book brings together leading international theorists, and a variety of stimulating approaches, to develop a critical understanding of the rise of ethical foreign policy, and to analyze the limits of ethical policy-making on its own terms. They deal with the limits of ‘ethical foreign policy’ both in the light of the internal dynamic of these policies themselves, and with regard to the often unintended consequences of policies designed to better the world. This book also shows how the transformation of both the domestic and the international spheres of politics means that ethics has become a rallying point for non-state actors and experts who gather around values and norms in order to force institutions to justify their behavior. This process results from different structural changes and the transformation of the international system, the individualization of Western societies and the growing importance of expertise in the justification of decisions in risk adverse societies. It leads to a transformation of norms and to a redefinition of a global ethical framework that needs to be clarified. This book will be of great interest to all students and researchers of foreign policy formation, politics and international relations.

Author: Carool Kersten
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135008922
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 209

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This book presents an intellectual history of today’s Muslim world, surveying contemporary Muslim thinking in its various manifestations, addressing a variety of themes that impact on the lives of present-day Muslims. Focusing on the period from roughly the late 1960s to the first decade of the twenty-first century, the book is global in its approach and offers an overview of different strands of thought and trends in the development of new ideas, distinguishing between traditional, reactionary, and progressive approaches. It presents a variety of themes and issues including: The continuing relevance of the legacy of traditional Islamic learning as well as the use of reason; the centrality of the Qur’an; the spiritual concerns of contemporary Muslims; political thought regarding secularity, statehood, and governance; legal and ethical debates; related current issues like human rights, gender equality, and religious plurality; as well as globalization, ecology and the environment, bioethics, and life sciences. An alternative account of Islam and the Muslim world today, counterbalancing narratives that emphasise politics and confrontations with the West, this book is an essential resource for students and scholars of Islam.