Political theorists as dangerous social actors

Hendrix, Burke A.

doi:10.1080/09692290.2010.517980

Cited by 13 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…To the contrary, like the later critical theorists and standpoint epistemologists inspired by him, Horkheimer argues that allying with the oppressed in their emancipatory struggles is the best path to discovering truth. Despite the evidence to the contrary collected by van der Vossen and others, many continue to insist on the considerable epistemic benefits of either partisanship in general (e.g., White and Ypi 2016, 90-100) or solidarity with the oppressed in particular (e.g., Hendrix 2012). Resolving this epistemological debate, with its complex array of both philosophical and empirical evidence on both sides, would be impossible within the bounds of this article.…”

Section: In Defense Of Objectivitymentioning

confidence: 96%

Activism and Objectivity in Political Research

Frazer¹

2023

Perspect. polit.

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There are two opposed views on the proper relationship between academic research and political activism. The first argues that academics who study politics must remain objective, hence precluding activism. The second argues that academics can and should also be political activists, hence precluding scholarly objectivity. This article argues against an assumption shared by these otherwise opposing positions: that activism and objectivity are incompatible. It conceptually identifies and then normatively defends a form of objectivity characterized by active engagement with evidence that is what Max Weber calls “inconvenient” for one’s existing beliefs and commitments. Far from being incompatible with political activism, this form of objectivity is essential to its success. Since scholars, activists, and scholar-activists alike would all benefit from active engagement with inconvenient evidence, I conclude that academic institutions should promote this form of objectivity among both activist and non-activist scholars, while political organizations should promote the same virtue among both academic and non-academic activists.

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Section: In Defense Of Objectivitymentioning

confidence: 96%

Activism and Objectivity in Political Research

Frazer¹

2023

Perspect. polit.

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“…Of course, we must still face the second objection raised above—the accusation of “moral” rather than “scientific” relativism—which may seem to strike nearer to the heart of Foucault’s approach. Indeed, some poststructuralists embrace a version of it, asserting that if we accept the death of the subject, we cannot proceed with constructive normative theory, and must confine ourselves to critique (Hendrix, 2012). As I shall demonstrate, however, this does not follow.…”

Section: Normativity Beyond Subjectivity: An Anti-essentialist Ontolomentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond the search for the subject: An anti-essentialist ontology for liberal democracy

Bagg

2018

European Journal of Political Theory

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Reading Foucault's work on power and subjectivity alongside "developmentalist" approaches to evolutionary biology, this paper endorses poststructuralist critiques of political ideals grounded in the value of subjective agency. Many political theorists embrace such critiques, of course, but those who do are often skeptical of liberal democracy, and even of normative theory itself. By contrast, those who are left to theorize liberal democracy tend to reject or ignore poststructuralist insights, and have continued to employ dubious ontological assumptions regarding human agents. Against both groups, I argue that Foucault's poststructuralism must be taken seriously, but that it is ultimately consistent with normative theory and liberal democracy. Linking poststructuralist attempts to transcend the dichotomy between agency and structure with recent efforts by evolutionary theorists to dissolve a similarly stubborn opposition between nature and nurture, I develop an anti-essentialist account of human nature and agency that vindicates poststructuralist criticism while enabling a novel defense of liberal democracy.

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“…The imposition of animal rights discourse on human-animal relations across the north (as, for example, in the anti-sealing and anti-fur campaigns) has already inflicted grave harms on northern indigenous communities (Lynge, 1992; Wenzel, 1991); so general disclaimers against imposing one's morality on indigenous peoples are simply not sufficient here. If Donaldson and Kymlicka are really intent on asserting the universality of their moral argument, then they need to acknowledge and attend to the very specific ways their argument might harm real indigenous people who have long struggled to maintain their distinctive cultural practices and ways of life under circumstances of extreme duress, often against powerful others seeking to “improve” them morally (see Hendrix, 2010).…”

Section: The Cultural Specificity Of the “Universal” Principles Undermentioning

confidence: 99%

First Nations, Citizenship and Animals, or Why Northern Indigenous People Might Not Want to Live in Zoopolis

Nadasdy

2016

Can J Pol Sci

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Recent northern First Nation land claim agreements have created a new category of First Nation citizenship. Although many embrace the category as an essential aspect of First Nation sovereignty, others reject it as a colonial imposition that constrains the possibilities for indigenous politics. There does indeed appear to be a gap between the legal category of First Nation citizenship and northern indigenous peoples’ ideas about political society. For one thing, the latter includes animals, while the former does not. In their recent book,Zoopolis, Donaldson and Kymlicka develop a model of animal citizenship. Although not primarily concerned with First Nation citizenship, they do assert the universality of their model, including its compatibility with indigenous ideas about proper human-animal relations. In this article, I assess those claims and show that, to the contrary, their model is in many ways antithetical to the knowledge and practices of northern indigenous peoples.

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Political theorists as dangerous social actors

Cited by 13 publications

References 15 publications

Activism and Objectivity in Political Research

Activism and Objectivity in Political Research

Beyond the search for the subject: An anti-essentialist ontology for liberal democracy

First Nations, Citizenship and Animals, or Why Northern Indigenous People Might Not Want to Live in Zoopolis

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