The Politics of Persons : Individual Autonomy and Socio-historical Selves

It is both an ideal and an assumption of traditional conceptions of justice for liberal democracies that citizens are autonomous, self-governing persons. Yet standard accounts of the self and of self-government at work in such theories are hotly disputed and often roundly criticized in most of their guises. John Christman offers a sustained critical analysis of both the idea of the 'self' and of autonomy as these ideas function in political theory, offering interpretations of these ideas which avoid such disputes and withstand such criticisms. Christman's model of individual autonomy takes into account the socially constructed nature of persons and their complex cultural and social identities, and he shows how this model can provide a foundation for principles of justice for complex democracies marked by radical difference among citizens. His book will interest a wide range of readers in philosophy, politics, and the social sciences. Introduction pt. 1. Selves. The social concept of self: critical taxonomy The post-modern subject The narrative self Memory, agency, and the self pt. 2. Autonomy. Political persons The historical concept of autonomy Relational autonomy The dynamics of social identities pt. 3. Justice. Justice over time: history, public reason, and political legitimacy Conclusion. This book offers a model of individual autonomy which takes into account the socially constructed nature of persons and their complex cultural and social identities, and provides a foundation for principles of justice for complex democracies marked by radical difference among citizens. Presents a model of individual autonomy and provides a foundation for principles of justice for complex democracies