Rethinking Utopia: Interdisciplinary Approaches

(Hardback)

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Rethinking Utopia is a collection that discusses utopian thinking in relation to different philosophical themes. It seeks utopianism in political theory (particularly in Kant and Derrida), populism, Turkish Islamism, international law, and it fleshes out themes of modernism and classless society in the selected utopian examples. By discussing and showing the relationship between utopia and these topics, the book shows that the range of subjects related to utopias is wider than the current literature suggests.

The book attempts to bring together academic fields, which are not cross-fertilized in the existing debates on utopia, by building bridges between actual politics and futuristic visions. On the one hand, it looks at utopia as a means to think about and reconfigure contemporary politics (as in the case of international law and populist politics); on the other hand, it investigates how different philosophical/literary texts, from widely-known More and Le Guin to lesser-known Turkish Islamists Ksakrek, Karako and zel, imagine their distinct utopian vision where a new form of anarchist, classless or Islamist society could be possible.

Reviews

An updated and original revision of the utopian theoretical tradition.

As a well-known saying in the field of utopian studies, one persons utopia is another ones dystopia; and if you want to lessen the gap between the two, it is equally important to concentrate on the necessity of a kind of utopian thinking. An equally broad and egalitarian utopian imaginary can only overcome the dystopian reality. In this contemporary dystopian world in which we all live, studies and critical thought on utopian politics are a necessity for achieving a better world. With Ozan's far-reaching edition, readers will get involved with the relationship between political theory, social class, international law, and utopian literature. In every section of this book, the writers continually remind us that if you do not have a utopia, you are destined to live in your own dystopia. A must-read primer for anyone thinking of the possibility of a better tomorrow.

Author Bio

Ebru Deniz Ozan is currently a faculty member at Ktahya Dumlupnar University, Department of Political Science and International Relations.