Socialism - General & Miscellaneous, Civics, Civil Rights - General, General & Miscellaneous Political Theory, Political Philosophy, Liberalism & Conservatism, Social Sciences - General & Miscellaneous, Ethics & Moral Philosophy - Applied - General & Misc
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Overview
In the wake of the revolutions of 1989, the ongoing political turmoil in the Soviet Union, and the democratization of most of Latin America, what is the task of political theorists? Ronald Beiner's invigorating critique of liberal theory and liberal practices takes on the shibboleths of modern Western discourse. He confronts the aridity of liberal societies that possess incommensurable "values" and "rights," but no principles. To Beiner, this neutralist view is both a false description of liberal society and an incoherent political ideal. Rather, he encourages the theorist to remain faithful to the important task of questioning and criticism, instead of serving as a source of ideological reassurance about our own superiority. Beiner looks to the Socratic tradition for guidance. Permitting ethos to replace values, and discourse about "the good" to replace talk about "rights," the theorist is able to reorder social priorities. Considered in this light, the liberal political philosophy of the 1970s and 1980s appears insufficiently Socratic, as does a liberal way of life that presents itself as a model of imitation. Polemical, impassioned, and brilliantly argued, What's the Matter with Liberalism? is essential reading for everyone who cares about contemporary theory and the future of liberal society.Author Biography: Ronald Beiner is Professor of Political Science at the University of Toronto. He is the author of Political Judgment (1984) and editor of Hannah Art's Lectures on Kant's Political Philosophy (1982).
Editorials
Publishers Weekly -
Liberal political theory, which promotes choice, mobility and maximum personal freedom, has contributed to a ``shopping mall culture'' whose members are producers and consumers instead of involved citizens, suggests the author. Critical of left-leaning thinkers' ``preoccupation with rights, interests and rational preferences,'' he urges liberals to shift gears and turn to the Socratic tradition, with its emphasis on virtue and character formation, for guidance in reordering our social priorities. Beiner, a professor of political science at the University of Toronto, has produced a dense, challenging scholarly critique. He seeks to transcend ``phony individualism,'' which hinders creation of the level of public culture necessary to sustain meaningful citizenship in a community guided by moral aims. Described here by a colleague as ``a socialist admirer of Allan Bloom,'' Beiner in a closing chapter sketches ``an alternative case for socialism'' that centers on solidarity and political enfranchisement rather than economic redistribution and social equality. (Aug.)Book Details
Published
September 29, 1995
Publisher
University of California Press
Pages
208
Format
Paperback
ISBN
9780520203358