Overview

Can politics now be both radical and realistic? This book is a collection of Anne Showstack Sassoon's writing which spans the major transitions from Thatcher and Reagan to Clinton and Blair; the collapse of communism to the regeneration of social democracy. Looking at the role of intellectuals in rethinking politics, she argues that drawing from the past, and broadening contemporary sources of political and academic knowledge can contribute to a grounded, radical hegemonic politics which can shape change. Applying original interpretations of Antonio Gramsci's ideas on intellectuals, political language, civil society and political leadership, Anne Showstack Sassoon goes well beyond his framework to examine key contemporary political issues including citizenship, modernising the welfare state, and the relationship between parents and teachers. Informed by feminist debates, and reflecting on womens changing socio-economic roles, she argues that in periods of rapid change, we should see that the inconsistencies and contradictions of social change can produce valuable theoretical, and practical, insights. Engaging with radical claims of centre-left politics, this book brings together theoretical discussion with empirical and personal examples to suggest how to negotiate difficult the line between wishful thinking and weary fatalism in order to create the basis for widespread consent for political and social reforms. Gramsci and Contemporary Politics is aimed at graduate students of politics, political theory, gender studies and sociology.

Full Product Details

Author:   Anne Showstack Sassoon
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Routledge
Volume:   No.4
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 1.90cm , Length: 23.40cm
Weight:   0.430kg
ISBN:  

9780415162142

ISBN 10:   0415162149
Pages:   184
Publication Date:   16 December 1999
Audience:   College/higher education ,  General/trade ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  General
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Facing the Future, Evaluating the Past; Part 1 Theoretical Foundations; Chapter 2 The Challenge to Traditional Intellectuals; Chapter 3 The Politics of The Organic Intellectuals; Chapter 4 Gramsci’s Subversion of the Language of Politics; Part 2 Political Interventions; Chapter 5 Equality and Difference; Chapter 6 Back to the Future; Chapter 7 Beyond Pessimism of the Intellect; Chapter 8 From Realism to Creativity; Part 3 Reflections and Explorations; Chapter 9 Rethinking Socialism; Chapter 10 Dear Parent…; Chapter 11 Subjective Authenticity, Cultural Specificity, Individual and Collective Projects;

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Author Information

Anne Showstack Sassoon’s publications include Gramsci’s Politics, and Women and the State: The Shifting Boundaries of Public and Private. She is Professor of Politics at Kingston University, UK.

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