Modern Social Imaginaries Modern Social Imaginaries

Publisher Description

One of the most influential philosophers in the English-speaking world, Charles Taylor is internationally renowned for his contributions to political and moral theory, particularly to debates about identity formation, multiculturalism, secularism, and modernity. In Modern Social Imaginaries, Taylor continues his recent reflections on the theme of multiple modernities. To account for the differences among modernities, Taylor sets out his idea of the social imaginary, a broad understanding of the way a given people imagine their collective social life.Retelling the history of Western modernity, Taylor traces the development of a distinct social imaginary. Animated by the idea of a moral order based on the mutual benefit of equal participants, the Western social imaginary is characterized by three key cultural forms—the economy, the public sphere, and self-governance. Taylor’s account of these cultural formations provides a fresh perspective on how to read the specifics of Western modernity: how we came to imagine society primarily as an economy for exchanging goods and services to promote mutual prosperity, how we began to imagine the public sphere as a metaphorical place for deliberation and discussion among strangers on issues of mutual concern, and how we invented the idea of a self-governing people capable of secular “founding” acts without recourse to transcendent principles. Accessible in length and style, Modern Social Imaginaries offers a clear and concise framework for understanding the structure of modern life in the West and the different forms modernity has taken around the world.

  • GENRE
    Non-Fiction
    RELEASED
    2003
    29 December
    LANGUAGE
    EN
    English
    LENGTH
    232
    Pages
    PUBLISHER
    Duke University Press
    SELLER
    Duke University Press
    SIZE
    534.4
    KB
    Power Power
    2019
    Return to Order: From A Frenzied Economy to An Organic Christian Society--Where We've Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go Return to Order: From A Frenzied Economy to An Organic Christian Society--Where We've Been, How We Got Here, and Where We Need to Go
    2013
    50 Big Ideas You Really Need to Know 50 Big Ideas You Really Need to Know
    2022
    Sociology Sociology
    2018
    The Promise of Politics The Promise of Politics
    2005
    Invitation to Sociology Invitation to Sociology
    2011
    Inside The Montreal Screw Job: Who Really Got Screwed in the WWE? Inside The Montreal Screw Job: Who Really Got Screwed in the WWE?
    2013
    The God Conclusion The God Conclusion
    2018
    Pirke Avot Pirke Avot
    2017
    Hegel and Modern Society Hegel and Modern Society
    2015
    EMI EMI
    2014
    The Explanation of Behaviour The Explanation of Behaviour
    2021