"This is a thought-provoking and well-written book."
-- "American Political Science Association"

"Passavant's argument depends on stablising a paradoxical tension between two principles conventionally involved in an adversary relationship."
--"Journal of American Studies"

"Passavant challenges the dichotomous approach to the relationship between liberalism and communitarianism. Overall, "No Escape" offers new insight on the relationship by critcally delving into historical events, sociopolitics, and legal developments. It challenges the conventional wisdom regarding the inherent confloict between expanding liberal rights while embracing communitarian values. Some readers will find considerable value in his judiciously documented and forceful argument."
--"The law and Politics Book Review"

Conventional legal and political scholarship places liberalism, which promotes and defends individual legal rights, in direct opposition to communitarianism, which focuses on the greater good of the social group. According to this mode of thought, liberals value legal rights for precisely the same resason that communitarians seek to limit their scope: they privilege the individual over the community. However, could it be that liberalism is not antithetical to social group identities like nationalism as is traditionally understood? Is it possible that those who assert liberal rights might even strengthen aspects of nationalism?

No Escape argues that this is exactly the case, beginning with the observation that, paradoxical as it might seem, liberalism and nationalism have historically coincided in the United States. No Escape proves that liberal government and nationalism canmutually reinforce each other, taking as its example a preeminent and seemingly universal liberal legal right, freedom of speech, and illustrating how it can function in a way that actually reproduces nationally exclusive conditions of power.

No Escape boldly re-evaluates the relationship between liberal rights and the community at a time when the call has gone out for the nation to defend the freedom to live our way of life. Passavant challenges us to reconsider traditional modes of thought, providing a fresh perspective on seemingly intransigent political and legal debates.

Contents:
Introduction: Postmodern Republicanism Paul A. Passavant Immanence 1. Can Immanence Explain Social Struggles? Ernesto Laclau Transcendence 2. The Immanence of Empire Peter Fitzpatrick Market 3. On Divine Markets and the Problem of Justice Bill Maurer Law 4. Legal Imperialism: Empire's Invisible Hand? Ruth Buchanan and Sundhya Pahuja Representation 5. From Empire's Law to the Multitude's Rights: Law, Representation, Revolution Paul A. Passavant Sovereignty 6. Representing the International: Sovereignty after Modernity? Mark Laffey and Jutta Weldes Global 7. Africa's Ambiguous Relation to Empire and Empire Kevin C. Dunn Intermezzo: The Theory & Event Interview Sovereignty, Multitudes, Absolute Democracy A Discussion between Michael Hardt and Thomas Dumm Space 8. The Repositioning of Citizenship: Emergent Subjects and Spaces for Politics Saskia Sassen Place 9. The Irrepressible Lightness of Joy and of Being Green: Empire and Environmentalism William Chaloupka Migration 10. Smooth Politics Malcolm Bull Generation 11. Taking the Millennialist Pulse of Empire's Multitude: A Genealogical Feminist Analysis Lee Quinby Capitalism 12. The Ideology of Empire and Its Traps Slavoj Zizek Communication 13. The Networked Empire: Communicative Capitalism and the Hope for Politics Jodi Dean Revolution 14. The Myth of the Multitude Kam Shapiro Event
15. Representation and the Event Paul A. Passavant and Jodi Dean Contributors

Since its publication last year, Empire has come to dominate the academic world, stimulating debate and discussion throughout the humanities, social sciences, and into the mainstream media. Empire's New Clothes addresses Empire in all its complexity, that is as a work of legal and political theory that diagnoses our era and urges liberatory action. More precisely, it will set the outlines of the debate as it is emerging around the claims of Empire.

"This is a thought-provoking and well-written book."
-- "American Political Science Association"

"Passavant's argument depends on stablising a paradoxical tension between two principles conventionally involved in an adversary relationship."
--"Journal of American Studies"

"Passavant challenges the dichotomous approach to the relationship between liberalism and communitarianism. Overall, "No Escape" offers new insight on the relationship by critcally delving into historical events, sociopolitics, and legal developments. It challenges the conventional wisdom regarding the inherent confloict between expanding liberal rights while embracing communitarian values. Some readers will find considerable value in his judiciously documented and forceful argument."
--"The law and Politics Book Review"

Conventional legal and political scholarship places liberalism, which promotes and defends individual legal rights, in direct opposition to communitarianism, which focuses on the greater good of the social group. According to this mode of thought, liberals value legal rights for precisely the same resason that communitarians seek to limit their scope: they privilege the individual over the community. However, could it be that liberalism is not antithetical to social group identities like nationalism as is traditionally understood? Is it possible that those who assert liberal rights might even strengthen aspects of nationalism?

No Escape argues that this is exactly the case, beginning with the observation that, paradoxical as it might seem, liberalism and nationalism have historically coincided in the United States. No Escape proves that liberal government and nationalism canmutually reinforce each other, taking as its example a preeminent and seemingly universal liberal legal right, freedom of speech, and illustrating how it can function in a way that actually reproduces nationally exclusive conditions of power.

No Escape boldly re-evaluates the relationship between liberal rights and the community at a time when the call has gone out for the nation to defend the freedom to live our way of life. Passavant challenges us to reconsider traditional modes of thought, providing a fresh perspective on seemingly intransigent political and legal debates.