Studies in Social and Political Thought

Editors' Introduction

Valerie Whittington, James Michael Stockman — Fri, 13 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Critical Social Ontology as a Foundation for Ethics: Marx, Lukács and Critical Judgment

Michael J. Thompson — Mon, 02 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0000

In this paper, I outline a theory of critical social ontology derived from the fundamental ideas of Marx and the later work on the ontology of social being by Georg Lukács. I argue that we can discern categories of social being that can aid in the project of diagnostic social critique, but also that these categories can be used to formulate an ethical theory that we can ground in this critical social ontology. I therefore defend the thesis, against postmetaphysical thinkers that have argued to the contrary, that a satisfactory and critical theory of ethics can and indeed must be rooted in a theory of ontology. I end with some reflections on how critical social ontology can help combat the problem of reification and help us think through issues of ethical or normative concern.

On the Failure of Oracles: Reflections on a Digital Life

David. M. Berry — Sat, 31 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0000

[No abstract] Opening paragraph:

Across the globe, as the sun rises, people begin each day with a routine that marks 21stcentury life as very different from any other century. Before they get dressed, before they are even fully awake, most people start their morning by gazing at rectangular oleophobic panes of illuminated glass. Every day, a new world is painted in millions of individual organic light-emitting diodes which are embedded in a substrate under a layer of glass that is harder and thinner than any previously created. The screen is brighter than any reading surface we have ever known. The first thing we do each morning is to point this blaze of dazzling light straight into our eyes which carries the retina-quality notifications of the digital straight into our foggy brains. Before we are even fully conscious, the digital has disclosed a world to us, a stream of information and data, rivers of news, rivulets of reminders and lists.

Happy Birthday Jürgen Habermas

James Gordon Finlayson — Mon, 02 Sep 2019 00:00:00 +0000

[No abstract] First paragraph: Habermas turned ninety on June 18th 2019. Over the last six decades he’s been Germany’s foremost social theorist, philosopher, public intellectual, and journalist. His political writings currently stretch to twelve volumes. Cue a host of different public events across Germany celebrating his life and work. Cue also the usual paeans and panegyrics, and, as anyone who has followed the on-line discussion will know, some remarkably harsh criticism.

The Production of Space Through Land Reclamation

Niclas Kern — Sat, 31 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0000

This dissertation argues that land reclamation has become geopolitical. Land reclamation has added a new dimension to international relations and this dimension cannot be ignored, for it touches upon our fundamental understanding of state territory and spatial practice. Drawing on Stuart Elden and Henri Lefebvre, territory is understood as a set of political technologies that produce different dimensions of our modern conception of territorial space. Land reclamation operates as such a territorial technology and alters our understanding of maritime space in contemporary geopolitics and international law. Two case studies will explicate this development. The first study will investigate coastal reclamation in Singapore and its effects for the city-state’s international relations. The second study will analyse Chinese reclamation works in the disputed region of the South China Sea. Both investigations will approach these activities with a focus on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as the international juridical space of territory. In conclusion, this dissertation claims that the material and conceptual production of space triggered by advancements in land reclamation technology are reshaping territorial state practice and the corresponding legal framework of maritime space.

Kelly, Review of Psychopolitics: Neoliberalism & New Technologies of Power By Byung-Chul Han

James F. Kelly — Sat, 31 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Harris, Review of New Dark Age: Technology and the End of the Future by James Bridle

Harris Neal — Sat, 31 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Meade, Review of Municipal Dreams: The Rise and Fall of Council Housing By John Boughton

Freddie Meade — Sat, 31 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0000

Edmunds, Review of Adam Smith and Rousseau: ethics, politics, economics Edited by Maria Paganelli, Dennis C. Rasmussen, and Craig Smith

Jack Edmunds — Sat, 31 Aug 2019 00:00:00 +0000