Bøger i Philosophie & Politique - Philosophy & Politics serien

Ideals are important in social reality, but they have been neglected in theories of law, politics, and morality. This book has the role of ideals as its central theme. More specifically, it argues that ideals are necessary to understand pluralism, that they are key elements in controversy and debate, and that they enable development. It combines theoretical analysis of the concept of ideals with discussion of concrete debates and cases, including philosophical debates about politics and equality, sociological studies of the diverse interpretations of the rule of law, and accounts of the development of environmental law and privacy law. Thus, the functioning of ideals is critically examined, showing the merits and limitations of an ideal-oriented approach.

The color of the book¿s cover alludes to the time and context in which this important volume originated: the 3 Interdisciplinary Conference Celebrating International Women¿s Day at the New School for Social Research in New York City. At that time ¿orange alerts¿ were issued by the United States to create a climate of fear and thereby stifle any critical debate of its foreign and domestic policy. The feminist thinkers presented in this volume are alert that such a critique is needed. They draw on the various languages of their fields to address wide-ranging topics and key questions in feminist politics, theory and philosophy. They all confront the state of urgency concerning the role of women in all classes of society, in all fields of research and the academy. This unique collection ranges across disciplines; as such the four major topics ¿ aesthetics and female representation, love and psychoanalysis, care and ethics, the different understandings of ¿women¿ ¿ represent current topics of cross-disciplinary interest for Women¿s and Gender Studies, Philosophy, and Political Science.

On the threshold to the 21st century the cry «never again» seems illusory, even absurd. Did it ever harbour credibility? Were we so naive? The Holocaust was not a finality, not the end of «final solutions» in Europe. Genocide has continued to emerge as an active element in European politics and policies. Kosovo and Bosnia provide testament. This book presents the concept of genocide as a political and social tool in modern Europe, not only reconciled with modernity, but as what may be an integral component. Modernity, however, is also closely linked with the Enlightenment and its concepts of tolerance, equality and liberty. This volume sheds light upon the inherent contradictions of modernity between Enlightenment and genocide, and on how this ambivalent European heritage is confronted. This book was produced in the framework of the research project The Cultural Construction of Community in Modernisation Processes in Comparison in co-operation between the European University Institute in Florence and Humboldt University in Berlin.