scholarly journals Post-foundational Ontology and the Charge of Social Weightlessness in Radical Democratic Theory: A Response to Lois McNay’s The Misguided Search for the Political

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom N. Henderson
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Theory ◽  
Radical Democracy ◽  
The Body ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
The Political ◽  
Social Suffering ◽  
Ontological Approach ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status ◽  
Foundational Ontology

This article responds to the accusation made by Lois McNay in The Misguided Search for the Political that much radical democratic theory is ‘socially weightless’ as a direct result of its turn towards an ontological understanding of the political. It argues that the social weightlessness identified in the work of the particular theorists McNay singles out for critique is not the result of the ontological approach per se. After briefly summarising McNay’s argument, Oliver Marchart’s ontology of political difference is used to defend the ‘search for the political’ against four aspects of McNay’s argument: the status of the ontological in post-foundational thought, the question of universality in relation to the political, the relationship between the social and the political, and that between indeterminacy and agency. Following this, the methodology of the disclosing critique of social suffering that McNay puts forward as an alternative to the ontological paradigm will be examined. This will be shown not only to be compatible with such a paradigm, but to be rooted in the very same parts of Heidegger’s philosophy. Moreover, her approach is found to enhance the ontological approach to the political by recovering its hermeneutical dimension, and in turn reconnecting hermeneutics to the question of the body. These are steps which, if further built upon, could add not only social, but also fleshly weight to ontological theories of the political, strengthening the critical potential of radical democracy.

Women in Power and Decision making Positions : Conditions and Restraints

1970 ◽  
pp. 53-57
Author(s):  
Azza Charara Baydoun
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Political Participation ◽  
Political Life ◽  
The Political ◽  
Decision Making Process ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Policies And Procedures ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status ◽  
Slow Progress

Women today are considered to be outside the political and administrative power structures and their participation in the decision-making process is non-existent. As far as their participation in the political life is concerned they are still on the margins. The existence of patriarchal society in Lebanon as well as the absence of governmental policies and procedures that aim at helping women and enhancing their political participation has made it very difficult for women to be accepted as leaders and to be granted votes in elections (UNIFEM, 2002).This above quote is taken from a report that was prepared to assess the progress made regarding the status of Lebanese women both on the social and governmental levels in light of the Beijing Platform for Action – the name given to the provisions of the Fourth Conference on Women held in Beijing in 1995. The above quote describes the slow progress achieved by Lebanese women in view of the ambitious goal that requires that the proportion of women occupying administrative or political positions in Lebanon should reach 30 percent of thetotal by the year 2005!

Romans and Foreigners

2003 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evangelos Chrysos
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Identity ◽  
The Political ◽  
Social Anthropology ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status ◽  
Proper Definition ◽  
Cultural Reality

It seems that a serious approach to the status of foreigners and the Byzantines'attitude towards them should now begin with a proper definition drawn from other disciplines, such as sociology and social anthropology. this chapter tries to estimate the political and legal dimensions of Romanness (Romanitas) in the meaning of citizenship vs. the status of the non-Roman in his relationship towards the empire. But since Romanitas is not only a political and legal but in particular a social and cultural reality, and since the levels are not always clearly distinguished, the discussion also refers to what form is the social and cultural identity of Roman vs. foreigner.

scholarly journals Student/teachers from Turfloop: the propagation of Black Consciousness in South African schools, 1972–76

Africa ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 89 (S1) ◽  
pp. S189-S209
Author(s):  
Anne Heffernan
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Student Teachers ◽  
Political Action ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
The Political ◽  
Black Consciousness ◽  
The North ◽  
The Social ◽  
The University ◽  
New Generation

AbstractThe movement of school teachers to primary and secondary schools around South Africa and its Bantustans in the early and mid-1970s was an intentional part of the project of propagating Black Consciousness to school learners during this period. The movement of these educators played a key role in their ability to spread Black Consciousness philosophy, and in the political forms and methods they chose in teaching it. These were shaped by their own political conscientization and training in ethnically segregated colleges, but also in large part by the social realities of the areas to which they moved. Their efforts not only laid the foundation for Black Consciousness organization in communities across South Africa, they also influenced student and youth mechanisms for political action beyond the scope of Black Consciousness politics. This article explores three case studies of teachers who studied at the University of the North (Turfloop) and their trajectories after leaving university. All of these teachers moved to Turfloop as students, and then away from it thereafter. The article argues that this pattern of movement, which was a direct result of apartheid restrictions on where black South Africans could live, study and work, shaped the knowledge they transmitted in their classrooms, and thus influenced the political consciousness of a new generation.

Social Imperialism and Wilhelmine Germany

1979 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 331-349 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian L. D. Forbes
Keyword(s):  
Political System ◽  
Status Quo ◽  
Domestic Policy ◽  
The Political ◽  
Social Democrat ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status ◽  
The Common ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Interpretive Scheme

In recent times the historiography of the Wilhelmine Reich has clearly reflected the influence of Eckart Kehr and of later historians who have adopted and developed his work. The Rankean dogma of the Primat der Aussenpolitik (primacy of foreign policy) has been replaced by a new slogan, Primat der Innenpolitik (primacy of domestic policy). The resultant interpretive scheme is by now quite familiar. The social structure of the Bismarckean Reich, it is said, was shaken to its foundations by the impact of industrialization. A growing class of industrialists sought to break the power of the feudal agrarian class, and a rapidly developing proletariat threatened to upset the status quo. The internecine struggle between industrialists and agrarians was dangerous for both and for the state, since the final beneficiary might be the proletariat. Consequently agrarians and industrialists closed their ranks against the common social democrat enemy and sought to tame the proletariat, which had grown restive under the impact of the depression, by means of a Weltpolitik which would obviate the effects of the depression, heal the economy, and vindicate the political system responsible for such impressive achievements. Hans-Ulrich Wehler and others call this diversionary strategy against the proletarian threat social imperialism; and this, it is said, is the domestic policy primarily responsible for Wilhelmine imperialism.

Between ‘Anti-totalitarianism’ and Radical Democracy

Populism ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 79-119
Author(s):  
Irem Taşçıoğlu
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Theory ◽  
Radical Democracy ◽  
The Other ◽  
The Political ◽  
Left Wing ◽  
Political Implications ◽  
Emancipatory Politics ◽  
Intellectual Milieu

Abstract Laclau’s theory on populism which is inseparable from his strategic endeavour to formulate a novel form of left-wing emancipatory politics has set off a variety of critiques, most notably from scholars who associate themselves with different strands of democratic theory. This paper picks out and uses Lefortian theory on democracy, utilizing it in order to figure out the different ways in which Laclau’s account could be construed and criticized. It argues that there are two possible interpretations of Lefort’s democratic theory with two different political implications, one liberal and the other radical-democratic and that they provide us with two different ways to formulate a critique of Laclauian populism. It particularly addresses the historical conjuncture from which Lefort’s democratic theory emerges and investigates how his ambiguous encounters with the intellectual milieu in France in the 70s, namely the ‘antitotalitarian moment’ undergird these two possible interpretations. This article’s elaboration on these two interpretations for addressing Laclau’s populism finalizes with a comparison between the political implications of the two and with a new proposal to invigorate counter-populism along the lines of Etienne Balibar as a (Lefortian) radical-democratic alternative to Laclau’s populism.

Music in Early Twentieth-Century Istanbul

2021 ◽  
Vol 89 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-84
Author(s):  
Onur Öner
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Social History ◽  
Urban Life ◽  
Limited Attention ◽  
The Political ◽  
Music Schools ◽  
Political Crises ◽  
Early Twentieth Century ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status

This study addresses the social history of music in early twentieth-century Ottoman Istanbul. The paper argues that private music schools were at the center of transformations in music and that their history is profoundly related to the political crises the Ottoman state experienced after the turn of the twentieth century. More precisely, by approaching the Ottoman bureaucracy from a musical perspective, the paper tries to link the reorganization of the Ottoman bureaucracy in 1909 with the emergence of private music schools in Istanbul. To explore the process, the paper follows some official functionaries’ career paths to explain their concentration in these schools. In contrast to conventional historiography, the aim is to emphasise that out of the political crises, private music schools emerged as a new ground in music. By paying limited attention to musical aspects, the study will mainly address the social roles these schools occupied in Ottoman urban life. They were practically social organizations, whose members pursued common goals. Collective action, such a fundamental shift of mindset on the part of the musicians, facilitated the advancement of the status of musicians in Ottoman urban society and decreased uncertainty about the future of the profession. Moreover, the institutional identity provided by the schools changed the place of women in music by increasing their visibility as music teachers and performers.

Rape as a Weapon of War in Myanmar/Burma

2019 ◽  
pp. 266-284
Author(s):  
Annalise Oatman ◽  
Kate Majewski
Keyword(s):  
Historical Development ◽  
Legal Culture ◽  
Minority Women ◽  
The Political ◽  
Ethnic Minority Women ◽  
The Social ◽  
Political Forces ◽  
The Status ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Way

This chapter examines the conflict in Myanmar and its historical development as an example of the way that rape is wielded as a weapon of war. It also provides a discussion of advocacy for the ethnic minority women of Myanmar at the grassroots, national, and international levels. It reviews statistics on conflict-related rape and theories regarding the social and political forces driving it. It examines the political history of Myanmar and the status of Myanmarese women. It also discusses the way that current conditions have set the stage for conflict-related rape in Myanmar and data on its prevalence. It discusses the extradition of the rapist of a 7-year-old girl, Myanmarese grassroots efforts to address this issue, and international proposals for reform. In addition, it discusses the way that the “legal culture” of a nation can get in the way of the enactment of international legislation.

scholarly journals Risk as Moral Danger: The Social and Political Functions of Risk Discourse in Public Health

1993 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 425-435 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah Lupton
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Body Politic ◽  
Modern Society ◽  
The Body ◽  
The Political ◽  
The Social ◽  
Divine Retribution ◽  
Multiple Meanings ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Risk Discourse

Risk is a concept with multiple meanings and is ideologically loaded. The author reviews the literature on risk perception and risk as a sociocultural construct, with particular reference to the domain of public health. Pertinent examples of the political and moral function of risk discourse in public health are given. The author concludes that risk discourse is often used to blame the victim, to displace the real reasons for ill-health upon the individual, and to express outrage at behavior deemed socially unacceptable, thereby exerting control over the body politic as well as the body corporeal. Risk discourse is redolent with the ideologies of mortality, danger, and divine retribution. Risk, as it is used in modern society, therefore cannot be considered a neutral term.

Romanian Gypsies in Spain. A Migratory Phenomenon, Its Causes and Repercussions

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 160-169
Author(s):  
Silviu Costachie
Keyword(s):  
Research Program ◽  
Social Acceptance ◽  
Historical Analysis ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
Direct Result ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Status ◽  
Employment Education

AbstractIn the following paper we will discuss about the situation of the Romanian gypsies living in Spain and the main problems involved by their presence in this country. We will analyze the causes that made them emigrate to Spain, together with a historical analysis of this process, the living conditions they have (housing, employment, education...). Also, we will present the social problems they suffer because of their particular culture, other than Spanish, the main settlements where they chosen to live in Spain and social acceptance from the point of view of the Spanish population. The present article is the direct result of a research program that was developed almost two years ago by the Research Center for Regional Development and European Integration of the University of Bucharest, part of a larger research program regarding the ethnic minorities of Romania. The main important aspect of this research is the fact that we used two target groups interviewed both in Romania and Spain and also, we used official information regarding Romanian gypsy located actually on Spanish territory, according with the official Spanish census. This way we managed to gather a large quantity of information and to provide to the reader a closer to reality image of the status of Romanian gypsy presently living inside Spanish border. Also, the novelty brought by this research is the fact that we tried to present the social and integration problems encountered by the Romanian gypsies located in the cities or villages of Spain. The article might be considered a starting point for future research upon this subject.

Radical Democracy with what Demos?

2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 225-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Larry Alan Busk ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Democratic Theory ◽  
Radical Democracy ◽  
The Political ◽  
Right Wing ◽  
Political Ontology ◽  
Ernesto Laclau ◽  
Chantal Mouffe ◽  
Right Wing Populism

This paper considers the radical democratic theory of Chantal Mouffe and Ernesto Laclau with reference to the recent rise of Right-wing populism. I argue that even as Mouffe and Laclau develop a critical political ontology that regards democracy as an end in itself, they simultaneously exclude certain elements of the demos. In other words, they appeal to formal categories but decide the political content in advance, disqualifying Right-wing movements and discourses without justification. This ambivalence between form and content reveals the limits of Mouffe and Laclau’s brand of radical democracy for understanding and critiquing the present political conjuncture.

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