Alternative Conceptions of Civil Society / / ed. by Will Kymlicka, Simone Chambers.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Princeton University Press eBook-Package Backlist 2000-2013
• MitwirkendeR: Banner, Michael,; Chambers, Simone,; Hanafi, Hasan,; Kymlicka, Will,; Lomasky, Loren E.,; Madsen, Richard,; Mosher, Michael A.,; Pakaluk, Michael,; Phillips, Anne,; Seligman, Adam B.,; Stone, Suzanne Last,; Walzer, Michael,
• HerausgeberIn: Chambers, Simone,; Kymlicka, Will,
• Place / Publishing House: Princeton, NJ : : Princeton University Press, , [2020]; ©2002
• Year of Publication: 2020
• Language: English
• Series: Ethikon Series in Comparative Ethics ; 1
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (248 p.)

The idea of civil society has long been central to the Western liberal-democratic tradition, where it has been seen as a crucial site for the development and pursuit of basic liberal values such as individual freedom, social pluralism, and democratic citizenship. This book considers how a host of other ethical traditions define civil society. Unlike most studies of the subject, which focus on a particular region or tradition, it considers a range of ethical traditions rarely addressed in one volume: libertarianism, critical theory, feminism, liberal egalitarianism, natural law, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Confucianism. It considers the extent to which these traditions agree or disagree on how to define civil society's limits and how to evaluate its benefits and harms. A variety of distinguished advocates and interpreters of these traditions present in-depth explorations of how these various traditions think of ethical pluralism within societies, asking how a society should respond to diversity among its members. Together they produce a work rich with original insights on a wide range of subjects about which little has been written to date. An excellent starting point for a comparative ethics of civil society, this book concludes that while the concept of civil society originated in the liberal tradition, it is quickly becoming an important focus for a truly cross-cultural dialogue. In addition to the editors, the contributors are Michael Banner, Hasan Hanafi, Loren E. Lomasky, Richard Madsen, Michael A. Mosher, Michael Pakaluk, Anne Philips, Adam B. Seligman, Suzanne Last Stone, and Michael Walzer.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Contents -- Acknowledgments -- INTRODUCTION Alternative Conceptions of Civil Society -- PART I -- CHAPTER 1 Civil Society as Idea and Ideal -- CHAPTER 2 Equality and Civil Society -- CHAPTER 3 Classical Liberalism and Civil Society -- PART II -- CHAPTER 4 Does Feminism Need a Conception of Civil Society? -- CHAPTER 5 A Critical Theory of Civil Society -- PART III -- CHAPTER 6 Christianity and Civil Society -- CHAPTER 7 Natural Law and Civil Society -- PART IV -- CHAPTER 8 The Jewish Tradition and Civil Society -- CHAPTER 9 Alternative Conceptions of Civil Society A Reflective Islamic Approach -- CHAPTER 10 Confucian Conceptions of Civil Society -- PART V -- CHAPTER 11 Conclusion Are Civil Societies the Transmission Belts of Ethical Tradition? -- Contributors -- Index