From Pluralist to Patriotic Politics: Putting Practice First

ISBN-13: 9780198296881 / Angielski / Twarda / 2000 / 312 str.

Charles Blattberg

Opis

The moral and political philosophy of pluralism has become increasingly influential. To pluralists, when values genuinely conflict we should aim to strike an appropriate balance or trade-off between them, though this means accepting that compromise will be inevitable. Politics, as a result, appears as a thoroughly tragic affair.
Drawing on a "hermeneutical" conception of interpretation, the author develops an original account of practical reasoning, one which assumes that, though making compromises in the face of conflicts is indeed often unavoidable, there are times when reconciliation, as distinct from compromise, is feasible. For this to be so, however, citizens must strive to converse--and not just negotiate--with each other, thus fulfilling the good that is at the heart of their shared political community. This is the central message of the patriotic alternative to pluralist politics that the author defends here.

Recenzje

An excellent study of contemporary democratic theory, well versed in the classics of political philosophy.

O autorze

Charles Blattberg is Assistant Professor of Political Philosophy, Department of Political Science, Tel Aviv University