Synopses & Reviews
A new edition of the highly acclaimed book
Multiculturalism and "The Politics of Recognition," this paperback brings together an even wider range of leading philosophers and social scientists to probe the political controversy surrounding multiculturalism. Charles Taylor's initial inquiry, which considers whether the institutions of liberal democratic government make room--or should make room--for recognizing the worth of distinctive cultural traditions, remains the centerpiece of this discussion. It is now joined by Jürgen Habermas's extensive essay on the issues of recognition and the democratic constitutional state and by K. Anthony Appiah's commentary on the tensions between personal and collective identities, such as those shaped by religion, gender, ethnicity, race, and sexuality, and on the dangerous tendency of multicultural politics to gloss over such tensions. These contributions are joined by those of other well-known thinkers, who further relate the demand for recognition to issues of multicultural education, feminism, and cultural separatism.
Praise for the previous edition:
Review
"Because it impinges upon so much--from campus speech to bilingual education to the causes and effects of political correctness--the current discussion on multiculturalism is essential to understanding Western academic culture as it exists today (and as it will exist in the future). This book is a valuable guide to the complexities involved."--Washington Times
Review
. . . is packed with depth, intelligence, and (to revive an old-fashioned word) wisdom. . . .
Review
"[Taylor's] comments about multiculturalism . . . demonstrate his knack for finding sensible middle ground between unreasonable extremes. . . . His writing here is clear, direct, and refreshingly free of philosophical jargon. He is also delightfully nonpartisan."--David McCabe, Commonweal
Review
Original and important.... The essays by Taylor and the other contributors raise the debate to a new level, providing it with the high moral seriousness it deserves. -- Lawrence Blum, Boston Review Multiculturalism ... is packed with depth, intelligence, and (to revive an old-fashioned word) wisdom.... It is highly relevant to pressing debates about nationalism and its identity. -- Michael Saward, The Times Higher Education Supplement [Taylor's] comments about multiculturalism in particular demonstrate his knack for finding sensible middle ground between unreasonable extremes.... His writing here is clear, direct, and refreshingly free of philosophical jargon. He is also delightfully nonpartisan. -- David McCabe, Commonweal Multiculturalism . . . is packed with depth, intelligence, and (to revive an old-fashioned word) wisdom. . . . -- Michael Saward, The Times Higher Education Supplement [Taylor's] comments about multiculturalism . . . demonstrate his knack for finding sensible middle ground between unreasonable extremes. . . . His writing here is clear, direct, and refreshingly free of philosophical jargon. He is also delightfully nonpartisan. -- David McCabe, Commonweal . . . engaging, thought-provoking, suggestive, full of insights on questions of intellectual history, philosophical and moral psychology, and current issues in political philosophy and practice. -- Ethics Because it impinges upon so much--from campus speech to bilingual education to the causes and effects of political correctness--the current discussion on multiculturalism is essential to understanding Western academic culture as it exists today (and as it will exist in the future). This book is a valuable guide to the complexities involved. -- Washington Times
Review
"Original and important.... The essays by Taylor and the other contributors raise the debate to a new level, providing it with the high moral seriousness it deserves."--Lawrence Blum, Boston Review
Review
"Multiculturalism . . . is packed with depth, intelligence, and (to revive an old-fashioned word) wisdom."--Michael Saward, The Times Higher Education Supplement
Review
". . . engaging, thought-provoking, suggestive, full of insights on questions of intellectual history, philosophical and moral psychology, and current issues in political philosophy and practice."--Ethics
Review
Multiculturalism ... is packed with depth, intelligence, and (to revive an old-fashioned word) wisdom.... It is highly relevant to pressing debates about nationalism and its identity. Boston Review
Review
Multiculturalism . . . is packed with depth, intelligence, and (to revive an old-fashioned word) wisdom. . . . David McCabe - Commonweal
Synopsis
A new edition of the highly acclaimed book
Multiculturalism and "The Politics of Recognition," this paperback brings together an even wider range of leading philosophers and social scientists to probe the political controversy surrounding multiculturalism. Charles Taylor's initial inquiry, which considers whether the institutions of liberal democratic government make room--or should make room--for recognizing the worth of distinctive cultural traditions, remains the centerpiece of this discussion. It is now joined by Jürgen Habermas's extensive essay on the issues of recognition and the democratic constitutional state and by K. Anthony Appiah's commentary on the tensions between personal and collective identities, such as those shaped by religion, gender, ethnicity, race, and sexuality, and on the dangerous tendency of multicultural politics to gloss over such tensions. These contributions are joined by those of other well-known thinkers, who further relate the demand for recognition to issues of multicultural education, feminism, and cultural separatism.
Praise for the previous edition:
Table of Contents
Preface (1994) ix
Preface and Acknowledgments xiii
PART ONE 1 Introduction Amy Gutmann 3
The Politics of Recognition Charles Taylor 25
Comment Susan Wolf 75
Comment Steven C. Rockefeller 87
Comment Michael Walzer 99
PART TWO 105
Struggles for Recognition in the Democratic Constitutional State Jurgen Habermas Translated by Shierry Weber Nicholsen 107
Identity, Authenticity, Survival: Multicultural Societies and Social Reproduction K. Anthony Appiah 149
Contributors 165
Index 169