Dewey and Public Philosophy

2018 ◽  
pp. 696-712
Author(s):  
Noëlle McAfee
Keyword(s):  
Public Deliberation ◽  
Public Intellectuals ◽  
Public Philosophy ◽  
The Public

Of late many philosophers have taken up the mantle of public philosophy, but, unlike Dewey, many think that the goal is to perform philosophy in public, to broadcast widely their arguments, or become renowned as public intellectuals. Many aim to improve the public, to help people think more rationally and critically, argue more deliberatively and logically, and perhaps see the light about philosophical matters. But Dewey shows that none of such work is democratic, for it usurps the role of a public to identify problems and their sources and skips over any need for public deliberation on what should be done. From a Deweyan perspective, the key for public philosophy is to remember that public problems are best fathomed by the public itself, which may enlist experts or governments to fix the problems but alone is the best judge of what needs to be addressed and whether the remedy is successful.

Ambiguities and Clichés in the Debate about Public Intellectuals

2007 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 295-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara A. Misztal
Keyword(s):  
Public Sphere ◽  
New Left ◽  
Public Intellectual ◽  
Public Intellectuals ◽  
The Public ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
The Public Sphere

This paper's purpose is to exam Turner's (2006a) thesis that Britain neither produced its own public intellectuals nor a distinctive sociology. It aims to outline difficulties with the logic of Turner's argument rather than to discuss any particular public intellectual in Britain. The paper argues that Turner's claim about the comparative insignificance of public intellectuals in Britain reinforces the myth of British exceptionalism and overlooks the significance of the contribution to the public sphere by intellectuals from other disciplines than sociology. It discusses Turner's assumption that intellectual innovation requires massive disruptive and violent change and suggests that such an assertion is not necessarily supported by studies of the conditions of the production of knowledge. Finally, the paper argues that Turner's anguish at the absence of public intellectuals among sociologists in Britain is symptomatic of New Left thinking that models the idea of the intellectual on Gramsci. In conclusion, the paper asserts that Turner's idea of the intellectual fails to note the tension at the heart of the role of public intellectual–the tension between specialist and non-specialist functions.

Libraries and the Preservation of Public Intellectual Space and Heritage

2020 ◽  
pp. 218-230
Author(s):  
Anil Kumar Nauriya
Keyword(s):  
Civil Society ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Public Intellectual ◽  
Public Intellectuals ◽  
The Public ◽  
Intellectual Heritage ◽  
Epistemic Justice ◽  
Primary Means

There is one aspect of Libraries that needs particularly to be highlighted, namely the role of the public library as a par excellence site that upholds the public intellectual space when contrasted to the more restricted academic space. It is a primary means by which public intellectuals and, through them, civil society, may hold even academia to account when the latter becomes confined by dead habits or restricted by institutional, bureaucratic, elitist or other, structures. It needs to be emphasized that academia and scholarship are not necessarily congruent. The interplay between academia and scholarship is crucial and that is made possible by the public library. Open libraries, especially public libraries, are at least as vital as the academia. The importance of a library or a museum is not necessarily related to its location or its size. “Preservation” and “intellectual heritage” need to be decolonized in order to realize epistemic justice.

scholarly journals POPULAR HISTORY, POST-WAR LIBERALISM, AND THE ROLE OF THE PUBLIC INTELLECTUAL IN RICHARD HOFSTADTER'S THE AMERICAN POLITICAL TRADITION (1948)

2016 ◽  
Vol 59 (4) ◽  
pp. 1133-1155 ◽  
Author(s):  
NICK WITHAM
Keyword(s):  
Public Intellectual ◽  
Early Career ◽  
Public Intellectuals ◽  
Liberal Politics ◽  
The Public ◽  
Political Tradition ◽  
Middlebrow Literature ◽  
The Status ◽  
Post War

ABSTRACTThis article examines the status of Richard Hofstadter's classic work The American political tradition (1948) as a ‘popular history’. It uses documents drawn from Hofstadter's personal papers, those of his publisher Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., as well as several of his contemporaries, to pursue a detailed reconstruction of the manner in which the book was written, edited, and reviewed, and to demonstrate how it circulated within, and was defined by, the literary culture of the 1940s and 1950s. The article explores Hofstadter's early career conception of himself as a scholar writing for audiences outside of the academy, reframes the significance of so-called ‘middlebrow’ literature, and, in doing so, offers a fresh appraisal of the links between popular historical writing, liberal politics, and the role of public intellectuals in the post-war United States.

scholarly journals Considering the academy: academics, public intellectuals and activism

2017 ◽  
Vol 16 (01) ◽  
pp. E
Author(s):  
Emma Weitkamp
Keyword(s):  
Public Intellectuals ◽  
The Public ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
Public Role ◽  
Public Debates

Reflecting on the public role of academics, this issue of JCOM includes a set of commentaries exploring public intellectuals and intellectualism. The commentaries explore the role of academics in public debates, both as bringers of facts and passion. These pieces, together with past commentaries and letters to JCOM raise interesting questions about the role of academics in public debates that are, perhaps not those usually trodden in the academic literature.

The role of social movements leading to the emergence of women public intellectuals

2019 ◽  
pp. 67-78
Author(s):  
Ann Brooks
Keyword(s):  
Social Movements ◽  
Public Sphere ◽  
Social Activism ◽  
Political Activity ◽  
Public Intellectuals ◽  
The Public ◽  
Women's Participation ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Print Industry

This chapter addresses the significance of social movements in accelerating women into the public sphere as public intellectuals. Indeed, the role of social movements was important in defining women public intellectuals politically. The growth of social movements has to be set alongside the expansion of higher education for women, as well as the expansion of the print industry. This led to an expansion and broadening of the base of women's participation in political activity, particularly around specific campaigns and causes. Women were actively involved, individually and collectively, in a number of campaigns prior to the emergence of the suffrage movement. Ultimately, the intersection of gender and class was an important factor leading to the growth of both political activism and, more specifically, the emergence of the suffragettes and later women's liberation movement (WLM). Analysis shows that the motivation of most women was pragmatic and issue based as opposed to ideological. Issue-based politics covered all social classes and thus brought women together in social activism and within social movements.

scholarly journals PERAN BADAN PERMUSYAWARATAN DESA DALAM MEWUJUDKAN PEMBENTUKAN PERATURAN DESA YANG PARTISIPATIF DI KABUPATEN LAMPUNG TIMUR

FIAT JUSTISIA ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahadi Fajrin Prasetya
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Public Participation ◽  
Public Deliberation ◽  
Literary Study ◽  
Historical Approach ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Figures ◽  
Village Government ◽  
The Village

AbstractThe objective of this research was to find out why the Village Representative Board (BPD) was not yet able to draft participative village regulations in East Lampung district. This was a qualitative research with normative and empirical jurisdiction approaches with literary study, statute approach, case approach and historical approach. Data were collected with the literary study. The results showed that the role of Village Representative Board (BPD) and drafting village regulation has been exercised in a participative way but not optimal because of some factors. The village regulation should be drafted by BPD, but the village regulation was initiated and drafted by Head of Village. BPD lack of knowledge related to their tasks and functions in village legislation, mechanism and process of making participative village regulation, and BPD was less optimal in making synergy with public related to participative village regulation making. The rights of the public in Bojong village has been participative in making village regulation but not optimal as it was regulated Article 96 of Law Number 12 of 2011 on legislation related to public participation rights. The making of village regulation in Bojong so far was conducted with village public deliberation by public figures as public representatives of each sub-villages to deliver public aspiration in making village regulation in Bojong village. Interview results with the chairman of BPD in Bojong village suggested that village deliberation in making village regulation was only a formality because the majority of participants such as public figures, religion figures, youth figures, and members of BPD almost always agreed with any draft of village regulation proposed by village government. Keywords: Village Representative Board (BPD), village regulation, participativeAbstrakTujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui mengapa Badan Permusyawaratan Desa (BPD) belum mampu menyusun peraturan desa yang partisipatif di Kabupaten Lampung Timur. Ini merupakan penelitian kualitatif dengan yuridis normatif dan empiris pendekatan dengan studi sastra, pendekatan undang-undang, pendekatan kasus dan pendekatan historis. Data dikumpulkan dengan studi sastra. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa peran Badan Permusyawaratan Desa (BPD) dan penyusunan peraturan desa telah dilakukan dengan cara partisipatif tetapi tidak optimal karena beberapa faktor. Peraturan desa harus disusun oleh BPD, tapi peraturan desa yang digagas dan dirancang oleh Kepala Desa. BPD kurangnya pengetahuan yang berkaitan dengan tugas dan fungsi mereka dalam undang-undang desa, mekanisme dan proses pembuatan peraturan desa partisipatif, dan BPD kurang optimal dalam membuat sinergi dengan masyarakat terkait partisipatif pembuatan peraturan desa. Hak-hak masyarakat di Desa Bojong telah partisipatif dalam membuat peraturan desa tetapi tidak optimal seperti yang diatur Pasal 96 UU Nomor 12 Tahun 2011 tentang undang-undang yang berkaitan dengan hak-hak partisipasi publik. Pembuatan peraturan desa di Bojong sejauh dilakukan dengan desa musyawarah publik oleh tokoh-tokoh masyarakat sebagai perwakilan masyarakat dari masing-masing sub desa untuk menyampaikan aspirasi masyarakat dalam membuat peraturan desa di Desa Bojong. Hasil wawancara dengan ketua BPD di Desa Bojong menyarankan bahwa musyawarah desa dalam membuat peraturan desa hanya formalitas, karena mayoritas peserta seperti tokoh masyarakat, tokoh agama, tokoh pemuda, dan anggota BPD hampir selalu setuju dengan rancangan peraturan desa diusulkan oleh pemerintah desa. Kata Kunci: Badan Permusyawaratan Desa (BPD), Peraturan Desa, Partisipatif

Communication, the media and deliberation

2020 ◽  
pp. 159-180
Author(s):  
Tim Marshall ◽  
Tim Marshall
Keyword(s):  
Two Dimensions ◽  
Public Deliberation ◽  
Public Understanding ◽  
Extensive Experience ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Press ◽  
Neutral Process ◽  
The Media

Part of the processes analysed in chapters 6 and 7 concerns the communication and mediation of ideas and policies. This is not an innocent or neutral process, but something which can affect deeply the content of any field being communicated and mediated. This chapter examines two dimensions of these activities. One focus is on the media, including the range of communication fields affecting planning. Particular study is made of the role of the press centrally and locally. The impending demise of the local press in Britain is studied, noting the problematic effects for the public understanding of planning. The second focus is on the actual and potential roles of public deliberation and participation. It is argued that there is scope to improve this considerably, working on the foundation of extensive experience built up nationally and internationally over recent decades.

The Limits of Tolerance from the Perspective of Their Public Legitimization

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-48
Author(s):  
Plamen Makariev ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Private Life ◽  
Public Deliberation ◽  
Public Communication ◽  
The Public ◽  
Liberal Democratic ◽  
National Minorities ◽  
The Status ◽  
Minority Policies

The limits of tolerance are discussed in this article with regard to the status of religious, ethnic, and national minorities in liberal-democratic societies. The question that the author is trying to answer is this: how can minority policies be designed in such a way that they provide the due conditions for the reproduction of minority identities over time which, at the same time, do not compromise national integrity. The line of demarcation between these two kinds of policy would also be the limit of tolerance, concerning the role of these identities in society. In the first part of the article a critical analysis is made of the policy of cultural neutrality of the state, based on the differentiation between the approaches to minority issues in the public and in the private life of the citizens. In the second part an alternative possible solution is presented―to draw the limits of tolerance by means of the legitimization of minority policies via public communication which is protected from manipulations by means of the methodology of public deliberation.

More than Words: A Multidimensional Approach to Deliberative Democracy

2020 ◽  
pp. 003232172095056 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ricardo Fabrino Mendonça ◽  
Selen A Ercan ◽  
Hans Asenbaum
Keyword(s):  
Deliberative Democracy ◽  
Crucial Role ◽  
Verbal Communication ◽  
Public Deliberation ◽  
Democratic Politics ◽  
Multidimensional Approach ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Debates ◽  
Ways Of Thinking

Since its inception, a core aspiration of deliberative democracy has been to enable more and better inclusion within democratic politics. In this article, we argue that deliberative democracy can achieve this aspiration only if it goes beyond verbal forms of communication and acknowledges the crucial role of non-verbal communication in expressing and exchanging arguments. The article develops a multidimensional approach to deliberative democracy by emphasizing the visual, sonic and physical dimensions of communication in public deliberation. We argue that non-verbal modes of communication can contribute to public deliberation when they (1) are used as part of reason-giving processes, (2) enable the inclusion of marginalized actors in public debates and (3) induce reflection and encourage new ways of thinking about the public controversies at hand.

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