Civilizations «narrate themselves in order to establish legitimacy, succeed against others, portray their own merits to their best advantage. The results express societal dynamics, yet also have a retroactive effect and decisively influence the self-conceptions of the «initiating societies. Political philosophies, interpretations of history and social perceptions of artistic achievements all contribute to these narratives. The dignified components, however, are by no means the sole or even the most important ones. Distinction in material culture (technological proficiency, popular art forms, etc.) or economic adroitness are even more consequential. The occidental narrative has been badly vacillating lately. Its severe crisis - due in part to a lack of collective self-confidence, but also to disagreements between its main strands - merits a meticulous analysis of a multitude of criteria. The resulting critique is embedded in reflections on a general theory of narrativity.

Since the early 1950s, the "decline of ideology" hypothesis has commanded a great deal of attention in the intellectual community at large. Th e controversy has taken both empirical and polemical turns. Th is book concentrates on the empirical literature, off ering both original contributions and previously published papers of outstanding importance. Selections were made to give full play to freshness of view and diversity of sources.

The book presents the hypothesis of ideological decline as set forth by two of its major spokesmen, brings together essays that subject this hypothesis to empirical tests in both Western and non-Western contexts, and then presents both positive and negative evaluations of the hypothesis. Avoiding an "ex cathedra" definition of ideology, the editor and contributors scrutinize the nature of ideology and its workings and suggest approaches to the comparative treatment of ideologies.

This book offers the first clear and wide-ranging overview of the putative decline of ideology, a concept burdened by a history of emotional argumentation. Changes in the function of ideology in the Soviet Union, the United States, Western Europe, and Japan are examined, and the ideological dimension of student movements of the 1960s is taken into account. "Ideology: Comparative and Cultural Status" is an expertly edited presentation of contrasting views of a vital topic. It is ideally suited for use in a variety of courses in the area of political thought and political sociology.

"Mostafa Rejai" is distinguished professor emeritus of political science at Miami University, Ohio. Some of his most recent books include "Concepts of Leadership in Western Political Thought, Leaders and Leadership: An Appraisal of Theory and Thought," and "World Military Leaders: A Collective and Comparative Analysis" (all with Kay Phillips). His articles have appeared in several scholarly journals.

This new book takes a literary approach in its study of Sayyid Qutb, one of the most significant political thinkers for contemporary Islamists and who has greatly influenced the likes of Osama Bin Laden. Executed by the Egyptian state in 1966, his books continue to be read and his theory of jahiliyya 'ignorance' is still of prime importance for radical Islamic groups.

Through an examination of his thoughts and theories, the book explores the main concepts that are used by today's radical fundamentalist movements, tracing the intellectual origins, as well as the conceptual and methodological thinking of radical Islamist movements in the modern world. The book sheds light on Islamic radicalism and its origins by presenting new analysis on the intellectual legacy of one of the most important thinkers of the modern Islamic revival. This is an invaluable new book for our time.

The Power of Sovereignty explores the religio-political and philosophical concepts of Sayyid Qutb, one of the most influential political thinkers for contemporary Islamists and who has greatly influenced the likes of Osama Bin Laden. Executed by the Egyptian state in 1966, his books continue to be read and his theory of jahiliyya ignorance is still of prime importance for radical Islamic groups.

Providing a detailed perspective of Sayyid Qutb s writings, this book examines:

• the relation between the specifics of the concept of hakimiyyah and that of jahiliyyah
• the force and intent of these two concepts
• how Qutb employs their specifics to critically assess the political establishments like nationalism and capitalism
• the influence of the two concepts on Egypt s radical Islamic movements, where many of al Qa ida s lieutenants, officers, ideologues and conspirators were fomented

Shedding light on Islamic radicalism and its intellectual origins The Power of Sovereignty presents new analysis on the intellectual legacy of one of the most important thinkers of modern Islamic revival.

Bishop George Bell always felt that the Church must endeavour to meet the problems of the modern world. He was thus foremost in applying the precepts of the Christian faith to national and international issues. George Bell very often raised his voice in the House of Lords (of which he was a distinguished member from December 1937 till January 1958) against class and racial hatred, against war, and against totalitarianism, and spoke for the innocent and helpless victims of persecution. Complete texts of all Bell's House of Lords speeches are presented here, published for the first time in one volume. The issues that Bell tackled are, in essence, still relevant today. This volume also includes unpublished correspondence between George Bell and Rudolf Hess, Hitler's deputy. After the National Socialists came to power in Germany, Bell, as a committed Christian, felt that he had to act in defence of the German Church, which the Nazis were eager to destroy. The Bishop made strenuous efforts to contact people in power in Germany, people who, he knew, took decisions with momentous consequences. Rudolf Hess was one of them.

Previously published as special issues of The European Journal of the History of Economic Thought and The Review of Political Economy, this volume contains the papers devoted to the life and work of Piero Sraffa. Sraffa was a leading intellectual of the twentieth century. He was brought to Cambridge by John Maynard Keynes and had an important impact on the philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein. He received the golden medal Soederstroem of the Swedish Academy of Sciences for his edition of David Ricardo's Works and Correspondence and he is the author of Production of Commodities by Means of Commodities, one of the most often cited book in economics. Using hitherto unpublished material from Sraffa's literary heritage kept at Trinity College, Cambridge, the papers throw new light on the intellectual development of the young Sraffa and correct several of the received views on him and his contribution. Themes covered concern his: objectivism rediscovery and reformulation of the classical theory of value and distribution criticism of Alfred Marshall's analysis relationship with his Cambridge colleagues and friends biography around the time when he left Italy for the UK friendship with Wittgenstein and his impact on the latter's thinking.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, a number of linkages have been established between newly independent Central Asian states, or populations within them, and diaspora ethnic groups. This book explores the roles that diaspora communities play in the recent and ongoing emergence of national identities in Central Asia and the Caucasus.
The loyalties of these communities are divided between their countries of residence and those states that serve as homeland of their particular ethno-cultural nation, and are further complicated by connections with contested transnational notions of common cultures and 'peoples'. Written by highly respected experts in the field, the book addresses issues such as nationalism, conflict, population movement, global civil society, Muslim communities in China and relations between the new nation-states and Russia.
This innovative book will interest students and researchers of transnationalism and Central Asian studies.

Between 1936 and 1938, some 3,000 young Americans sailed to France and crossed the Pyrenees to take part in the brutal civil war raging in Spain. Virtually all joined the International Brigades, formed under the auspices of the Soviet-led Comintern and largely directed by Communists. Yet a large number were not Communists; their activism was inspired by domestic and international crises of the 1930s, and colored by idealism.

The men who went to Spain came out of a radical subculture that emerged from the Depression and the New Deal. Th is radicalism was a native plant, but it was nourished from abroad. In the thirties the menace of fascism seemed to be spreading like cancer across Europe, giving an international aspect to many domestic problems in the United States. To intellectuals, students, unionists, liberals, and leftists, the threat of fascism was so real that many came to believe that if it was not stopped in Spain, eventually they would have to take up arms against fascism at home.

To understand the Americans who fought in the Spanish Civil War it is necessary to bury some of the shibboleths of cold war years. Dissidence in the United States occurs in response to perceptions of reality on this side of the Atlantic, not because of the wishes of men in the Soviet Union. Th e members of the Lincoln Battalion were genuine products of America, and their story is properly a page in American military and political history. From them, one can learn much about the world of the 1930s and perhaps even something about the potential of modern man for thought and action in time of crisis.

Is the West prepared for a world where power is shared with China? A world in which China asserts the same level of global leadership that the USA currently assumes? And can we learn to embrace Chinese political culture, as China learned to embrace ours? Here, one of the world's leading voices on China, Kerry Brown, takes us past the tired cliches and inside the Chinese leadership - as they lay out a roadmap for working in a world in which China shares dominance with the West. From how, and why, China as a dominant superpower has been inevitable for many years, to how the attempts to fight the old battles are over, Brown digs deeper into the problematic nature of China’s current situation - its treatment of dissent, of Xinjiang, Hong Kong, and the severe limitations on its management of relations with other cultures and values. These issues impact the way the West sees China, China sees the West, and how both see themselves. There are obstacles to the West accepting a more prominent place for China in the world – but just because this will be a difficult process does not mean that it should not happen. As Kerry Brown writes: history is indeed ending, but not how the West thought it would.

A crisis makes you rethink your life. The recent economic crisis is no exception. All of us are now thinking how the world could be run differently. Despite this, a radical alternative has hardly emerged to mobilize the masses. Written for the public and students, this book explores the character and spirit of radical politics in our times.

This new collection from the leading journal, Environmental Politics, presents an excellent overview of the key themes found in contemporary green political thought since the early 1990s. Bringing together the journal's major work, this new book charts a fascinating period in which environmental politics developed from a marginal position in society and the academy, to its current place in the intellectual mainstream. Subdivided into clear sections on political theory, social movements, political economy and policy questions, and assisted by a contextualising introduction, this volume focuses on a set of clear themes: the character of green political theory relationships with other political traditions and theories origins and dynamics of contemporary environmental politics differences, similarities and tensions between the North and South the relationship of environmentalism to market economics and ecological modernization environmental aspects of distributive justice at the local, national and global levels the roles, value and valuing of nature in green theory and institutional practice. As a compilation, this book is unique. It delivers a snapshot of a variety of issues in the field, and is therefore ideally suited to teaching purposes, especially at postgraduate level. In addition, as each section is chronologically arranged, an evolution of related ideas can be clearly seen and appreciated, which builds an excellent understanding of the field of environmental politics

Islam's Predicament with Modernity presents an in-depth cultural and political analysis of the issue of political Islam as a potential source of tensions and conflict, and how this might be peacefully resolved.

Looking at the issue of modernity from an Islamic point of view, the author examines the role of culture and religion in Muslim society under conditions of globalisation, and analyses issues such as law, knowledge and human rights. He engages a number of significant studies on political Islam and draws on detailed case studies, rejecting the approaches of both Orientalists and apologists and calling instead for a genuine Islamic pluralism that accepts the equality of others. Situating modernity as a Western product at the crux of his argument, he argues that a separation of religion and politics is required, which presents a challenge to the Islamic worldview.

This critical analysis of value conflicts, tensions and change in the Islamic world will be of interest to scholars and advanced students of international relations, social theory, political science, religion, Islamic studies and Middle Eastern studies.

Islam's Predicament with Modernity presents an in-depth cultural and political analysis of the issue of political Islam as a potential source of tensions and conflict, and how this might be peacefully resolved.

Looking at the issue of modernity from an Islamic point of view, the author examines the role of culture and religion in Muslim society under conditions of globalisation, and analyses issues such as law, knowledge and human rights. He engages a number of significant studies on political Islam and draws on detailed case studies, rejecting the approaches of both Orientalists and apologists and calling instead for a genuine Islamic pluralism that accepts the equality of others. Situating modernity as a Western product at the crux of his argument, he argues that a separation of religion and politics is required, which presents a challenge to the Islamic worldview.

This critical analysis of value conflicts, tensions and change in the Islamic world will be of interest to scholars and advanced students of international relations, social theory, political science, religion, Islamic studies and Middle Eastern studies.

This book focuses on the development of civism as it contributed to ancient Greek culture, and helped shape the psychology of citizenship in the Western world. The strength of this work is its interdisciplinary examination of those trends and influences that combined to give new insights into the rise and the fall of democracy in the ancient polis of Athens. The author presents an extensive description of the intellectual forces that attracted «international scholars and teachers to Athens, who in turn established important schools of higher learning as they labored to develop and advance the study of rhetoric and philosophy as competing alternative approaches for addressing the perceived weakness of the democratic system. This volume is an ideal supplement for instruction in courses in classical history, political science, philosophy, history of Western education, and advanced foundations of education.

This is a reissue of an influential text that was first published in 1987, to which the author has added an introduction reflecting on the work twenty years after publication. The grounding assumption of the book is that an element of utopianism is a necessity in any political thinking, and that a self-conscious utopianism can generate a richer level of theory and practice. The text then follows the chequered career of utopianism in the Marxist tradition, arguing that Marxism has been unable to do without a utopian dimension but for various reasons has often resisted acknowledging this fact. It examines the origins of the Marxist critique of utopianism, and the various ways, either covertly or overtly, in which the utopian was reinserted into the tradition. It looks at the utopian socialist predecessors of Marxism, the ambiguous critique of the utopian developed by Marx and Engels, the complex debate over utopianism in the Second International, the authoritarian socialism that emerged in the Soviet bloc, and the consciously utopian thought of Ernst Bloch, Herbert Marcuse, Rudolf Bahro, and Andre Gorz. Throughout, the book seeks to combine rigorous scholarship with a commitment to a utopian frame of mind.

In this first volume in the Contending Modernities series, Inclusive Populism: Creating Citizens in the Global Age, Angus Ritchie claims that our current political upheavals, exemplified by the far-right populism of billionaire Donald Trump, reveal fundamental flaws in secular liberalism. Ritchie maintains that both liberalism and this "fake populism" resign citizens to an essentially passive role in public life. Ritchie argues instead for an "inclusive populism," in which religious and nonreligious identities and institutions are fully represented in the public square, engaging the diverse communities brought together by global migration to build and lead a common life. Drawing on twenty years of experience in action and reflection in East London, Ritchie posits that the practice of community organizing exemplifies a truly inclusive populism, and that it is also reflected in the teaching of Pope Francis. Speaking to our political crisis and mapping out a way forward, Inclusive Populism will appeal to thoughtful readers and active citizens interested in politics, community organizing, and religion.

George Washington defined progressivism and provided the rationale for its constitutional basis in a vision of self-government: a nation dedicated to and capable of sustaining civil and religious liberty, the intertwined ends of politics as he saw it. For Washington, religious liberty was not a side benefit of independence but rather the objective for which independence was sought. Washington's political philosophy - radical for his time - was a commitment to the belief that law can never make just what is in its nature unjust. Before the close of the Revolutionary War, he had conceived of a union based on the progressive principle that the American people would qualify for self-government in the sense of free institutions in proportion to their moral capacity to govern themselves by the light of reason. Washington managed the conflicts over the spoils of victory that threatened to fracture the union. Containing this discord «within the walls of the Constitution may be considered his single greatest achievement. This overview traces Washington's political development through the war years, describes his contributions to the Constitution and the founding of America, debunks misrepresentations of Washington's relationship to slavery, and touches his presidential administration, including his precedent-setting decision to retire from the presidency after two terms. This book will be useful in courses on the American founding era, American studies, political philosophy and leadership, as well as of interest and value to the general reader.

Why does religion sometimes increase support for democracy and sometimes do just the opposite? In Faith in Numbers, political scientist Michael Hoffman presents a theory of religion, group interest, and democracy. Focusing on communal religion, he demonstrates that the effect of communal prayer on support for democracy depends on the interests of the religious group in question. For members of groups who would benefit from democracy, communal prayer increases support for democratic institutions; for citizens whose groups would lose privileges in the event of democratic reforms, the opposite effect is present. Using a variety of data sources, Hoffman illustrates these claims in multiple contexts. He places particular emphasis on his study of Lebanon and Iraq, two countries in which sectarian divisions have played a major role in political development, by utilizing both existing and original surveys. By examining religious and political preferences among both Muslims and non-Muslims in several religiously diverse settings, Faith in Numbers shows that theological explanations of religion and democracy are inadequate. Rather, it demonstrates that religious identities and sectarian interests play a major part in determining regime preferences and illustrates how Islam in particular can be mobilized for both pro- and anti-democratic purposes. It finds that Muslim religious practice is not necessarily anti-democratic; in fact, in a number of settings, practicing Muslims are considerably more supportive of democracy than their secular counterparts. Theological differences alone do not determine whether members of religious groups tend to support or oppose democracy; rather, their participation in communal worship motivates them to view democracy through a sectarian lens.

This volume invites us to revisit ideology, censorship and translation by adopting a variety of perspectives. It presents case studies and theoretical analyses from different chronological periods and focuses on a variety of genres, themes and audiences. Focusing on issues that have thus far not been addressed in a sufficiently connected way and from a variety of disciplines, they analyse authentic translation work, procedures and strategies. The book considers the ethical and ideological implications for the translator, re-examines the role of the ideologist or the censor-as a stand-alone individual, as representative of a group, or as part of a larger apparatus-and establishes the translator's scope of action. The chapters presented here contribute new ideas that help to elucidate both the role of the translator throughout history, as well as current practices. Collectively, in demonstrating the role that ideology and censorship play in the act of translation, the authors help to establish a connection between the past and the present across different genres, cultural traditions and audiences. The chapters in this book were originally published as a special issue of Perspectives: Studies in Translation Theory and Practice.

The long relationship between America’s colonizing wars and virulent anticommunism The colonizing wars against Native Americans created the template for anticommunist repression in the United States. Tariq D. Khan’s analysis reveals bloodshed and class war as foundational aspects of capitalist domination and vital elements of the nation’s long history of internal repression and social control. Khan shows how the state wielded the tactics, weapons, myths, and ideology refined in America’s colonizing wars to repress anarchists, labor unions, and a host of others labeled as alien, multi-racial, multi-ethnic urban rabble. The ruling classes considered radicals of all stripes to be anticolonial insurgents. As Khan charts the decades of red scares that began in the 1840s, he reveals how capitalists and government used much-practiced counterinsurgency rhetoric and tactics against the movements they perceived and vilified as “anarchist.� Original and boldly argued, The Republic Shall Be Kept Clean offers an enlightening new history with relevance for our own time.

Aristotle has been continuously at the frontier of philosophical reflection for almost 2400 years. Throughout the 20th century the influence of his practical philosophy has been growing. His "non-modernist" concept of phronesis or practical wisdom is attracting increasing interest as an alternative to both "modernism" and "post-modernism". This book is a meticulous study of Aristotle's phronesis and its applications to the fields of personal development or character formation and of ethical virtues. It also relates phronesis to the wider context of Aristotle's theoretical philosophy and of his different ways of knowing, and to both theoretical and practical concerns within modern social and action research. The whole of Aristotle's thinking is radically practice-based and directed. However, it never loses its theoretical focus. His theoretical philosophy is fundamentally dialogical. Hence, the relevance of Aristotelian thinking is striking for the current reconfigurations in the social organisation of learning and knowledge production.

Global Jihadism exposes the core doctrine and strategy of todaya (TM)s global Jihadist movement.

The first half of the book explores the ideas upon which groups such as Al Qaeda are built, including the concepts of Jihad, al-Wala wal-Bara, Takfir and Tawhid. Jarret Brachman exposes a genre of Jihadist strategic scholarship that has been virtually ignored in the West and helps to situate it within the broader Salafist religious movement. The second half explores the thinking and activities of Al Qaedaa (TM)s propaganda machine, explaining its intricacies and idiosyncrasies. It includes case studies on the rise and fall of global Jihadist terrorism in Saudi Arabia post-9/11, and highlights the explosive results of bringing theory to bear on practice in the United Kingdom over the past twenty years. The book concludes by providing innovative strategies for combating the global Jihadist ideology.

Global Jihadism exposes the core doctrine and strategy of today 's global Jihadist movement.

The first half of the book explores the ideas upon which groups such as Al Qaeda are built, including the concepts of Jihad, al-Wala wal-Bara, Takfir and Tawhid. Jarret Brachman exposes a genre of Jihadist strategic scholarship that has been virtually ignored in the West and helps to situate it within the broader Salafist religious movement. The second half explores the thinking and activities of Al Qaeda 's propaganda machine, explaining its intricacies and idiosyncrasies. It includes case studies on the rise and fall of global Jihadist terrorism in Saudi Arabia post-9/11, and highlights the explosive results of bringing theory to bear on practice in the United Kingdom over the past twenty years. The book concludes by providing innovative strategies for combating the global Jihadist ideology.

Thirteen years ago, Jorge Castaneda wrote the classic Utopia Unarmed, which offered a penetrating and comprehensive account of the Latin American left's fate at the end of the Cold War. Since then, the left across Latin America has travelled in paths no one could have predicted. Latin America nations from Mexico to Argentina wavered for years between leftism and American-supported neoliberalism, but in recent years the left has experienced a tremendous resurgence throughout the region. However, the left is not unified, and as Castaneda and the contributors show, it has followed two distinct paths: a more cosmopolitan style leftism, exemplified by Brazil and Chile, and a left fuelled by populist nationalism that has clear debts to Peronism. This latter version is most evident in Venezuela, but one can see it in Mexico's PRD party (in a tight race for the presidency at present), Bolivia, and Argentina. Left Over will comprehensively update this very important story, with specialists on every region contributing.