|
To perform an act of civil disobedience under present circumstances is an exercise in uncommon sense. Yet, what is the significance, if any, of such action? As civil disobedience becomes an accepted part of the political culture what role do figures like Mohandas K. Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. retain for global citizens? Further, what role might civil disobedience play in the politics of representative democracies as traditional forms of political affiliation diminish and power 'leaks' from the nation state? If traditional politics, conducted via party machines has surrendered innovation and vision to the interests of global corporations, what are the consequences for political life? In Civil Disobedience, Lawrence Quill proposes a fundamental reappraisal of civil disobedience (and civil obedience) in order to address these and other questions confronting citizens in late modernity.
LAWRENCE QUILL is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at San José State University, USA. He is the author of Liberty after Liberalism.
'Quill's cosmopolitan and cultural view on civil disobedience is a crucial contribution in a field traditionally focusing on the nation state and state theory. With a critical and reflective style he relates disobedience to a broad selection of social theories, introduces disobedience as "rupture" and creates a unique history of ideas.' - Dr Stellan Vinthagen, Senior Lecturer, School of Global Studies, Gothenburg University, Sweden
'This book fills a pressing gap in the literature. One of the most appealing aspects of Uncommon Sense is the author's highly accessible yet thorough history of the political constitution of civil disobedience and social order. Well written and highly relevant the book provides an unparalleled contextualization of the subject in an era of intensifying globalization. Tracing the dialectics of (political) power and authority on one side and the individual and collective imagination on the other Uncommon Sense. Written in a compelling and thought provoking manner this book should be compulsory reading for all upper level undergraduate, graduate, and more generally individuals interested in social order and social transformation.' - Hasmet M. Uluorta, Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of International Studies, University of Miami, USA
'Quill's cosmopolitan and cultural view on civil disobedience is a crucial contribution in a field traditionally focusing on the nation state and state theory. With a critical and reflective style he relates disobedience to a broad selection of social theories, introduces disobedience as 'rupture' and creates a unique history of ideas.' - Dr Stellan Vinthagen, Senior Lecturer, School of Global Studies, Gothenburg University, Sweden 'This book fills a pressing gap in the literature. Well written and highly relevant the book provides an unparalleled contextualization of the subject in an era of intensifying globalization. Written in a compelling and thought-provoking manner Civil Disobedience should be compulsory reading for all upper level undergraduates and graduates interested in social order and social transformation.' -- Hasmet M. Uluorta, Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of International Studies, University of Miami, USA
What Civil Disobedience Is (And Is Not)Obedience: Ancient and ModernAppealing to HeavenThe Politics of PerceptionCivil Disobedience, Alienation, Political RuptureDisobedience: International or Cosmopolitan?Conclusion
|
