Suchergebnisse

Douglass reviews 'Political Theory, Modernity and Post-Modernity' by N. J. Rengger.

Examines the defining characteristics of culture & morality regarding modernity. In the premodern era, institutions & culturally powerful individuals defined the standards & distinctions of healthy/unhealthy & refined/unrefined culture. However, cultural processing became more ambiguous in the early modern era, & early moderns (in the name of freedom) attempted to eliminate the boundary between healthy & unhealthy culture, while maintaining the distinction between high & low culture. However, it is argued that all distinctions have disappeared in recent decades, & modern culture is defined as omnivorous. Whereas culture was previously depicted as eternal & immortal, modernity defines culture as a collection of subjective, individual, & finite perspectives; modern culture is mortal & historically dependent. However, it is suggested that modern conceptions of morality are grounded in transcendent visions of goodness, & morality is thereby eternal & distinct from history. Therefore, modernity is characterized by the social negotiation of the eternal & finite, or cultural & moral. T. Sevier

The "insignificant incident" and its aftermath -- Alien to modernity -- Raping the dead -- Killers, torturers, sadists, and collaborators -- Revolutionary justice -- Cruel survival -- Tortured souls -- The ghostly arts -- Apocalypse now -- Afterword. hypocrite modernity

The future of socialism is discussed, with focus on: whether capitalist production encompasses a rationality that socialism lacks; the relation between capitalism & socialism; & the connections between capitalistic development & modernity. The institutional dimensions of modernity are identified -- capitalism, industrialism, administrative power, & military power. Understanding this multidimensional character of modernity is important to understanding types of movements, ie, the labor movement, civil & human rights movements, peace & disarmament campaigns, & ecological movements. Utopianism, which Karl Marx disdained, & which ironically is currently disavowed due to the failure of Marxism, is discussed, & a new utopian realism proposed. 3 Illustrations. C. Grindle

Discusses the relationship between modernity & anthropology in the context of posttotalitarian Eastern European countries. Modernity is defined as a Western ideological attitude, implies progression & a notion of preconceived temporality, & requires the appropriation of social elements from foreign civilizations. In the context of anthropology, modernity is an object, manner, or method of study as conceived by an individual anthropologist in his or her own society. Since anthropological studies were inaccessible to European societies under totalitarian rule, classical ethnography is prevalent in posttotalitarian scholarship, & the introduction of anthropology is perceived as a process of modernization. Anthropological studies in posttotalitarian nations have strengthened scientific approaches to social & cultural studies & helped develop cultural & psychological identities, focusing on the center-periphery relationship. Anthropology's importance to the contemporary world is discussed in conclusion. 22 References. Adapted from the source document.