The Politics of Community

A rich study of how community has been dealt with in social and political theory, providing an especially detailed critique of communitarian thought. It also investigates the implications of community for pulblic policy and political action. This text would be ideally suited to advanced undergraduate courses. The virtue of this book is to challenge the hegemony of the practice of market liberalism from a communitarian perspective, and to attempt to draw practical implications for social policy. -- Takeshi Nakano Given the extent to which community now dominates political discourse as a remedy for all the economic and social problems of society, a book that explicitly addresses the 'politics of community' is both timely and relevant. This book captures the latest debates about community within contemporary politics, it draws upon the most up-to-date literature from political philosophy and sociological theory to advance its argument, it provides a detailed critique of conservative, communitarian ways of thinking about community, and it links philosophical conceptions of community with their policy manifestations. A rich study of how community has been dealt with in social and political theory, providing an especially detailed critique of communitarian thought. It also investigates the implications of community for pulblic policy and political action. This text would be ideally suited to advanced undergraduate courses. The virtue of this book is to challenge the hegemony of the practice of market liberalism from a communitarian perspective, and to attempt to draw practical implications for social policy. Given the extent to which community now dominates political discourse as a remedy for all the economic and social problems of society, a book that explicitly addresses the 'politics of community' is both timely and relevant. This book captures the latest debates about community within contemporary politics, it draws upon the most up-to-date literature from political philosophy and sociological theory to advance its argument, it provides a detailed critique of conservative, communitarian ways of thinking about community, and it links philosophical conceptions of community with their policy manifestations.