The politics of change : globalization, ideology, and critique

Kant defined the Enlightenment as humanity's attempt to leave behind its self-imposed immaturity. Social theory is thus charged with enlightening the human condition and its social constitution in order to achieve maturity and human dignity. Enlightenment is a thoroughly subversive business. The authors to this volume are in no way disturbed by the claim that everybody contributes to society according to their ability and that everybody receives according to their needs. What is disturbing, though, is that the demand for such a 'change' appears outdated and that, instead, many commentators espouse the idea that society's 'laws of development' are governed by an invisible hand. The Politics of Change takes issues with such views. It does so through a timely assessment of the debate on globalization and contemporary versions of neo-liberal and neo-functionalist thought, which underpin much of the globalization discourse. The Politics of Change emphasizes 'change' as a project of human emancipation.

That the world is changing is not surprising. What, however, is to be understood by the "politics of change"? This book takes a critical view of the debate on "globalization" and assesses revamped versions of structuralist thought, which underpin much of the globalization discourse. Special attention is given to the work of Jürgen Habermas. In contrast to conventional views on change, the book emphasizes 'change' as a politics of emancipation. Bringing together original, specially-commissioned chapters by leading international scholars, it will rapidly establish itself as a landmark text.

Booknews

Taking the triumphalist discourse of globalization as an example, social scientists from several countries challenge the notion that social change is driven by an invisible hand, by laws of development that are inevitable and irresistible. Their eight essays cover the politics and social theory of the new reality of globalization, ideology and critique in new social theory and methodology, and critique and practice in the possibility of emancipatory change. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Preliminaries......Page 1 Contents......Page 6 Notes on Contributors......Page 8 1 The Politics of Change: Ideology and Critique......Page 10 2 Globalization, Depoliticization and ‘Modern’ Economic Management......Page 18 3 The Spectre of Globalization......Page 40 4 New Social Thought: Questions of Theory and Critique......Page 80 5 Jürgen Habermas’ Reconstruction of Historical Materialism......Page 114 6 The Disappearance of the ‘Socialist System’......Page 158 7 Zapata in Wall Street......Page 182 8 The Market, the State, and the End of History......Page 205 Index......Page 216