Plurality and Progress: Modernity in Political Philosophy and Historical Sociology (Summertalk) - Softcover

Wagner, Crea Research Professor Peter

Softcover

ISBN 10: 8787564203 ISBN 13: 9788787564205

Publisher: Aarhus University Press, 2010

Synopsis

Europeans - or "Westerners" - have long been inclined to think that their form of socio-political organisation, often referred to as "modern", is superior to others in both normative and functional terms. In both political philosophy and comparative-historical sociology, however, this claim has recently been critically debated and re-assessed. After reviewing the recent debate, this volume addresses the following key questions: if there is now a plurality of forms of modern socio-political organisation, what does this entail for our time-honoured idea of progress, or in other words, for our hope that the future world can be better than the present one? And: if despite all nuance our concept of modernity is in some way inextricably tied to the history of Europe, how can we compare different forms of modernity in a 'symmetric', non-biased or non-Eurocentric way? These questions gain a particular sense of urgency in our era of so-called globalisation, of radical time-space compression, because the claims and expectations of modernity have now become inescapable in ever more walks of life and for many more people than ever.

About this edition

• Publisher: Aarhus University Press
• Publication date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 8787564203
• ISBN 13: 9788787564205
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 101