Hegemony, Contestation, and Empowerment: The Politics of Law and Society Studies in South Korea

2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 275-304
Author(s):  
Chulwoo LEE
Keyword(s):  
South Korea ◽  
Karl Marx ◽  
Max Weber ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
Law And Society ◽  
Empirical Science ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
Academic Practices ◽  
New Generation

The philosophers have only interpreted the world, in various ways. The point, however, is to change it.(Karl Marx, Theses on Feuerbach, 1845)It can never be the task of an empirical science to provide binding norms and ideals from which directives for immediate practical activity can be derived.(Max Weber, Objectivity of Social Science and Social Policy, 1904)AbstractThis paper traces the development of law and society studies in South Korea, elucidates the political implications of the academic practices of law and society scholars, and identifies the forms of their political engagement. It canvasses the situation of law and society studies in the pre- and post-Liberation periods and analyzes the changes that have occurred since law and society came to be studied and taught in universities. The paper shows how the early generations of scholarship were sidestepped in the 1980s by the so-called “third-generation legal scholarship” and delineates the counter-hegemonic movement launched by the new generation of scholars. It throws light on the empowerment of critical law and society scholars in the post-democratization phases of the 1990s and 2000s, when many of those scholars actively participated in policy-making and civil advocacy, and discusses the tensions in those developments.

scholarly journals Revisiting Bureaucratic Dysfunction: The Role of Bureaucracy in Democratization

2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-147
Author(s):  
Im Tobin
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Karl Marx ◽  
Max Weber ◽  
Developmental State ◽  
The Political ◽  
Missing Link

While many studies have focused on the link between economics and democracy in exploring the strategies adopted by developing countries, they have tended to overlook the role of bureaucracy in democratization. This study seeks the missing link between bureaucracy and democratization. What are the conditions necessary for bureaucracy to facilitate the democratization process of a country? This article begins by briefly reviewing the bureaucracy literature from Max Weber and Karl Marx and then argues that despite its shortcomings, bureaucracy in its Weberian form can facilitate the political democratization of a developmental state. This study concludes that although bureaucracy is often regarded as dysfunctional, it can be instrumental in the democratization process in the context of the developmental state.

scholarly journals Interview with David McLellan July 2018

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-104
Author(s):  
Larry Ray ◽  
Iain Wilkinson
Keyword(s):  
Political Theory ◽  
Karl Marx ◽  
Contract Law ◽  
The Political ◽  
World Peace ◽  
Emeritus Professor ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
English Speaking ◽  
English Speaking World

David McLellan, interviewed here, is a Fellow of Goldsmiths College, University of London and Emeritus Professor of Political Theory, University of Kent. Since the 1970s he has been one of the leading biographers, translators and commentators on Marx in the English-speaking world. He is the author of several books on Marx and Marxism, including The Young Hegelians and Karl Marx; Karl Marx: His Life and Thought; Karl Marx: Selected Writings; Marx before Marxism; and Marxism and Religion. He has also published a biography of Simone Weil, books on the political implications of Christianity, and a lengthy article on contract law and marriage. He lectures widely around the world on these topics, frequently in China, and in 2018 addressed a conference in Nairobi on religion and world peace. In this interview, or conversation, with Larry Ray and Iain Wilkinson, in July 2018, David discusses the origins of his interest in Marx, the development Marx’s thought and his critique of the Hegelians, Marx’s critical method, Marx and religion, Marx on Russia, the role of violence in social change, the relevance of Marx’s work today, and offers comments on some recent biographies. David has spent much of his intellectual career engaging with the meaning and legacy of Marxism and these reflections should generate reflection and debate on the significance of Marx and the possibilities of radical political change today.

scholarly journals From Legibility to Eligibility: Politics, Subsidy and Productivity in Rural Asia

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-71 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew Walker
Keyword(s):  
South Korea ◽  
Agricultural Sector ◽  
Agricultural Productivity ◽  
The State ◽  
The Political ◽  
Productivity Improvement ◽  
Rural People ◽  
South Korean ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractThroughout Asia, the relationship between the state and the rural sector has shifted from taxation to subsidy. The political tussles over subsistence between resistant peasants and taxing states, eloquently described by James Scott, have been replaced by a more affluent political dynamic focussed on subsidy and productivity. This article explores this transformation by means of a comparative study of Thailand and South Korea. Like many other countries, Thailand and South Korea have followed the path from taxation to subsidy but Thailand has never successfully addressed its legacy of low agricultural productivity. Contemporary South Korean agriculture, by contrast, is a result of a century-long investment in productivity improvement, in both its taxation and subsidy phases. The interaction between government policy and agricultural productivity has important political implications. Whereas South Korea has made a successful democratic transition and achieved a broad consensus on support for the agricultural sector, Thailand has failed to effectively manage the contemporary dilemmas of exchange between rural people and the state.

scholarly journals ECONOMY AS A RELIGIOUS PROBLEM. A POLITICAL APPROACH

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-67
Author(s):  
Fabián Ludueña Romandini
Keyword(s):  
Karl Marx ◽  
Walter Benjamin ◽  
Max Weber ◽  
The Political ◽  
Modern Capitalism ◽  
Political Approach ◽  
Ernst Troeltsch ◽  
Religious Aspects ◽  
Point Of Departure

This article tackles the problem of understanding money and economy with non-economic analytical categories. The first part is devoted to point out the differences between the exclusively economic approaches to money and the recent research, from anthropology to philosophy, that has laid stress on the political and religious aspects of the monetary phenomenon. The second part is focused on Georg Simmel’s fundamental contributions to a philosophical comprehension of money. Finally, a fragment by Walter Benjamin is the point of departure to consider the religious and political aspects of modern capitalism and their relationships with the works of Karl Marx, Ernst Troeltsch and Max Weber.

Fugitive Democracy

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sheldon S. Wolin
Keyword(s):  
John Rawls ◽  
Karl Marx ◽  
Max Weber ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Political Issues ◽  
Postmodern Theory ◽  
The Sixties ◽  
Political Management ◽  
The Cold War ◽  
New Generation

The author of this book was one of the most influential and original political thinkers of the past fifty years. This book brings together his most important writings, from classic essays such as “Political Theory as a Vocation,” written amid the Cold War and the conflict in Vietnam, to his late radical essays on American democracy such as “Fugitive Democracy,” in which he offers a controversial reinterpretation of democracy as an episodic phenomenon distinct from the routinized political management that passes for democracy today. The author critically engages a diverse range of political theorists, including Thomas Hobbes, Karl Marx, Max Weber, Hannah Arendt, John Rawls, Michel Foucault, and Richard Rorty. These essays grapple with topics such as power, modernization, the Sixties, revolutionary politics, and inequality, all the while showcasing the author's enduring commitment to writing civic-minded theoretical commentary on the most pressing political issues of the day. Here, the author laments the rise of conservatives who style themselves as revolutionary, criticizes Rawlsian liberals as abstract to the point of being apolitical, diagnoses postmodern theory as a form of acquiescence, and much more. The book offers enduring insights into many of today's most pressing political predicaments, and introduces a whole new generation of readers to this provocative figure in contemporary political thought.

scholarly journals The Ocular Turn, Misty Poetry, and a Postrevolutionary Imagination

Prism ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-84
Author(s):  
Xiaobing Tang
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Revolution ◽  
The Political ◽  
Young Generation ◽  
Chinese Poetry ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
New Generation ◽  
Post Cultural Revolution ◽  
Bei Dao ◽  
Contemporary Chinese

Abstract “The Answer,” a poem by Bei Dao first published in 1978, marks the emergence of a defiant voice in contemporary Chinese poetry and asserts skepticism as the political stance of a young generation in post–Cultural Revolution China. It also heralds a historic transition from an era of sonic agitation to an aesthetics based on visual perception and contemplation. This rereading of Bei Dao's canonical poem and other related texts goes back to the late 1970s, when the political implications of the human senses were firmly grasped and heatedly debated. The author shows that an ocular turn occurs in “The Answer” and drives the aesthetic as well as political pursuits of a new generation of poets. He further argues that, in a moment still enthralled with a revolutionary sonic culture, Misty poetry disavowed aural excitement and was part of the reconditioning of the human senses in preparation for a postrevolutionary order and sensibility.

The Political Effects of Immigrant Naturalization

2017 ◽  
Vol 51 (2) ◽  
pp. 323-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Street
Keyword(s):  
Panel Data ◽  
North America ◽  
Political System ◽  
Early Adulthood ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Integration ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
Political Effects ◽  
Immigrant Politics

Immigration is transforming the societies of Europe and North America. Yet the political implications of these changes remain unclear. In particular, we lack credible evidence on whether, and how, becoming a citizen of the country of residence prompts immigrants to engage with the political system. This paper used panel data from Germany to test theories of citizenship and immigrant politics. I found that naturalization can promote political integration, but that this is more likely if new citizens have the chance to pick up habits of political engagement during the formative years of early adulthood.

scholarly journals Political implications of disconnection on social media: A study of politically motivated unfriending

2021 ◽  
pp. 146144482199999 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qinfeng Zhu ◽  
Marko M Skoric
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Political Engagement ◽  
The Political ◽  
Panel Survey ◽  
Political Expression ◽  
Safe Spaces ◽  
Political Conflicts ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Distinct Role

This study examines the political implications of social media through the lens of digital disconnectivity. Specifically, it focuses on politically motivated unfriending and examines its influence on individuals’ political engagement, namely political expression and information consumption on social media. Furthermore, considering the importance of minority–majority relations for understanding disconnection phenomena, we investigate whether the impact of unfriending is more pronounced among opinion minorities than majorities. Using a two-wave panel survey conducted in the post-Umbrella Movement Hong Kong, we find that politically motivated unfriending predicts an increased level of political expression, but that it is only significant among people who perceive themselves as holding minority opinions. At the same time, we find no relationship between unfriending and information consumption on social media. Based on the findings, we discuss the implications of unfriending for building digital “safe spaces” and its distinct role in promoting political engagement in times of political conflicts.

PENSAMENTO POLÍTICO EM GIORGIO AGAMBEN

Professare ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 109
Author(s):  
Claudemir Aparecido Lopes
Keyword(s):  
Political Freedom ◽  
State Of Exception ◽  
The Political ◽  
State Control ◽  
Giorgio Agamben ◽  
Modern Democracy ◽  
Social Fabric ◽  
Contemporary Politics ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
The Social

<p class="resumoabstract">O professor Giorgio Agamben tem elaborado críticas à engenhosa estrutura política ocidental moderna. Avalia os mecanismos de controle estatal, nos quais os denomina ‘dispositivos’, cuja força está na imbricação às normas jurídico-teológicas com seus similares ritos e liturgias. Suas ocorrências e legitimidade preponderam no tecido social cuja organização sistêmica se põe quase como elemento natural e não cultural. O texto tem por objetivo explorar a concepção política de Agamben sobre a política contemporânea, especialmente considerando seu livro: ‘Estado de Exceção’, cuja investigação apresenta a possibilidade de atenuação dos direitos de cidadania e o enfraquecimento da prática da liberdade política e o processo de relação dos indivíduos no meio social através da redução das subjetividades ‘autênticas’. Analisamos ainda a transferência do mundo sacro elaborado pelos teólogos católicos presente na modernidade à política cuja democracia moderna faz do homem (sujeito) tornar-se objeto do poder político. Faz também, reflexão dos conceitos de subjetivação e dessubjetivação relacionando-os às implicações políticas do homem moderno. A pesquisa é bibliográfica com ênfase na análise dos conceitos elaborados por Agamben, especialmente quanto ao ‘dispositivo’. Conclui que o indivíduo ocidental, de modo geral, sofre o processo de dessubjetivação e está ‘nu’, indefeso e alienado politicamente. Ele precisa voltar-se ao processo de ‘profanação’ dos dispositivos para libertar-se das vinculações orientadoras que forçosamente o descaracteriza enquanto ser ativo e livre.</p><p class="resumoabstract"><strong>Palavras-chave</strong>: Política. Liberdade. Subjetivação.</p><h3>ABSTRACT</h3><p class="resumoabstract">Professor Giorgio Agamben has been criticizing the ingenious modern Western political structure. It evaluates the mechanisms of state control, in which it calls them 'devices', whose strength lies in the overlap with legal-theological norms with their similar rites and liturgies. Its occurrences and legitimacy preponderate in the social fabric whose systemic organization is almost as a natural and not a cultural element. The text aims to explore Agamben's political conception of contemporary politics, especially considering his book 'State of Exception', whose research presents the possibility of attenuating citizenship rights and weakening the practice of political freedom and the individuals in the social environment through the reduction of 'authentic' subjectivities. We also analyze the transfer of the sacred world elaborated by the Catholic theologians present in the modernity to the politics whose modern democracy makes of the man - subject - to become object of the political power. It also reflects on the concepts of subjectivation and desubjectivation, relating them to the political implications of modern man. The research is bibliographical with emphasis in the analysis of the concepts elaborated by Agamben, especially with regard to the 'device'. He concludes that the Western individual, in general, suffers the process of desubjectivation and is 'naked', defenseless and politically alienated. He must turn to the process of 'desecration' of devices to free himself from the guiding bindings that forcibly demeanes him while being active and free.</p><p class="resumoabstract"><strong>Keywords</strong>: Politics. Freedom. Subjectivity. </p><p> </p>

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