Böcker av John Schwarzmantel

After the great revolutions of 1776 in America and 1789 in France, modern nations began to express political struggle as a conflict between Left and Right, a spectrum of ideologies including socialism, liberalism, conservatism, nationalism, and later, communism and fascism, among others. These dominant ideologies reflected the themes of industrial society, powerful nation-states, and the era of class politics. Today, however, a series of rapid social and political transformations have provoked a world-wide crisis of ideologies. New technology threatens the traditional social structure of heavy industry. Increased globalization challenges the sovereignty of the nation-state, and class divisions appear less salient. In light of these changes, do modern ideologies have anything to say to us as citizens of the world today? The Age of Ideology analyzes the contemporary relevance of the main ideologies that have been central to political struggle over the past two centuries. Believing the postmodern critique of ideologies as inadequate for dealing with society's problems, John Schwarzmantel argues convincingly that political ideologies still provide essential organizing frameworks for political debate and action.

An analysis of the phenomenon of political violence and its implications for democratic politics. This book applies democratic theory to the problem of creating a liberal democracy in a situation of conflict, violence and social division. It adopts a distinct perspective: that both community and conflict are at the heart of all but the smallest of democratic societies, and that they need to be reconciled in order for democracy to be successful. Within this framework the book focuses on the particular issue of the challenge posed by violence, both to established democracies and to the establishment of new democracies. Empirical examples from a wide range of established and developing democracies are used to elucidate this problem. There are chapters on national and ethnic conflict, the challenge of terrorism, the problems of cultural division, and on attempts at creating democracy by imposition. A concluding chapter explores the question of establishing a common culture of citizenship spanning ethnic and cultural divisions. Key Features*Topicality of the themes discussed*Combination of theoretical arguments with 'real world' empirical examples and case studies*Presentation of a broad overview of the crucial issues facing liberal democracies in contemporary politics*Advancement of the debate with the proposal of new arguments for the future conduct of liberal-democratic politics to meet new violent challenges*Takes examples from East Timor, Kenya, Chechnya, Afghanistan, Iraq and France

The ideologies of liberalism, socialism and conservatism have dominated political argument since the American and French revolutions. This work traces their emergence, and includes their relationship to modernity and the Enlightenment.

Offering an analysis of contemporary politics and of the scepticism and apathy which characterise the political life of modern democracies, this book develops a republican perspective as an alternative framework for political institutions.