Liberalism, Nationalism, Citizenship: Essays on the Problem of Political Community

Ronald Beiner

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Liberalism, Nationalism, Citizenship

Essays on the Problem of Political Community

Ronald Beiner

Language: English

Published/Copyright: 2007

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About this book

Liberals believe that the purpose of politics is to guarantee that individuals do not face unfair impediments in pursuing the lives they choose for themselves. Nationalists believe that the purpose of politics is to ensure that a people’s sense of authentic nationhood wins full expression in powers of collective sovereignty or self-rule. Both of these forms of political commitment yield world-transforming political philosophies, but do either of these visions do adequate justice to a philosophically robust ideal of shared citizenship and civic membership?

In Liberalism, Nationalism, Citizenship, Ronald Beiner engages critically with a wide range of important political thinkers and current debates in light of the Aristotelian idea that shared citizenship is an essential human calling. Virtually every aspect of contemporary political experience – globalization, international migration, secessionist movements, the politics of multiculturalism – pose urgent challenges to modern citizenship. Beiner’s work on the philosophy of citizenship is essential reading not just for students of politics and political philosophy, but for all those who rightly sense that these kinds of recent challenges demand an ambitious rethinking of the nature of political community.

Author / Editor information

Ronald Beiner is a professor of political science at the University of Toronto.

Reviews

This book is an important addition to the rapidly proliferating literature on questions of citizenship. Ronald Beiner offers a rich normative-philosophical reflection and valorization of the idea of citizenship, specifically to demonstrate that neither liberalism nor nationalism fully honours what he calls the “civic idea.” ... Though the book does not ultimately supply a radical theory of citizenship, it does make a valuable contribution to critiques of liberalism and nationalism as well as theories of citizenship and community. The analysis is contextualized, nuanced well-organized, and showered with lively links between theory and practice. It presents a skilful overview of contemporary debates by addressing some of the most important and difficult questions of citizenship and community, and persuasively resituates the concept of citizenship. It is a useful and relevant book for students of politics and political theory.

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Front Matter
i

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Contents
v

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Introduction
3

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Citizenship versus Liberalism
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Liberalism, Nationalism, Citizenship: Three Models of Political Community
21

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The Fetish of Individuality: Richard Flathman’s Willfully Liberal Politics
39

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Civic Resources in a Liberal Society: “Thick” and “Thin” Versions of Liberalism
52

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From Community to Citizenship: The Quest for a Post-Liberal Public Philosophy
65

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Is There Such a Thing As a Communitarian Political Philosophy?
83

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Citizenship versus Nationalism
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Nationalism’s Challenge to Political Philosophy
103

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Refl ections of a Diaspora Jew in Israel
125

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Hannah Arendt As a Critic of Nationalism
129

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National Self-Determination: Some Cautionary Remarks on the Rhetoric of Rights
147

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Citizenship and Nationalism: Is Canada a “Real Country”?
166

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1989: Nationalism, Internationalism, and the Nairn-Hobsbawm Debate
180

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Civicism between Nationalism and Globalism: Some Refl ections on the Prob lem of Political Community
194

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Index
217

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Publishing information

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

eBook published on:

August 15, 2023

eBook ISBN:

9780774850414

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

Main content:

240

https://doi.org/10.59962/9780774850414

eBook ISBN: 9780774850414

Audience(s) for this book

For an expert adult audience, including professional development and academic research

Liberalism, Nationalism, Citizenship

Overview

About this book

Author / Editor information

Reviews

Topics

Table of contents

Front Matter

Contents

Introduction

Liberalism, Nationalism, Citizenship: Three Models of Political Community

The Fetish of Individuality: Richard Flathman’s Willfully Liberal Politics

Civic Resources in a Liberal Society: “Thick” and “Thin” Versions of Liberalism

From Community to Citizenship: The Quest for a Post-Liberal Public Philosophy

Is There Such a Thing As a Communitarian Political Philosophy?

Nationalism’s Challenge to Political Philosophy

Refl ections of a Diaspora Jew in Israel

Hannah Arendt As a Critic of Nationalism

National Self-Determination: Some Cautionary Remarks on the Rhetoric of Rights

Citizenship and Nationalism: Is Canada a “Real Country”?

1989: Nationalism, Internationalism, and the Nairn-Hobsbawm Debate

Civicism between Nationalism and Globalism: Some Refl ections on the Prob lem of Political Community

Index

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