Randall G. Styers
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195151077
- eISBN:
- 9780199835263
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195151070.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter traces scholarly debates concerning magic first through nineteenth-century theories concerning the origins of religion and then through various twentieth-century attempts by philosophers ...
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This chapter traces scholarly debates concerning magic first through nineteenth-century theories concerning the origins of religion and then through various twentieth-century attempts by philosophers and social scientists to define the nature of religion. As intellectualized and privatized Enlightenment notions of religion came to define the appropriate forms for human relation to the supernatural, magic no longer designated idolatry, Satanism, or sin (as it had in medieval views of witchcraft and sorcery), but a new form of aberrational behavior, a delusion contravening appropriately rationalist, and largely Protestant, piety. Whether theorists have seen magic as designating a category distinct from (and external to) religion or as an internal subset of religion, magic has functioned to demarcate religion's limits and the bounds for appropriate religious behavior in modern liberal society. This chapter traces the normative views of human identity and power animating these scholarly formulations of magic.Less
This chapter traces scholarly debates concerning magic first through nineteenth-century theories concerning the origins of religion and then through various twentieth-century attempts by philosophers and social scientists to define the nature of religion. As intellectualized and privatized Enlightenment notions of religion came to define the appropriate forms for human relation to the supernatural, magic no longer designated idolatry, Satanism, or sin (as it had in medieval views of witchcraft and sorcery), but a new form of aberrational behavior, a delusion contravening appropriately rationalist, and largely Protestant, piety. Whether theorists have seen magic as designating a category distinct from (and external to) religion or as an internal subset of religion, magic has functioned to demarcate religion's limits and the bounds for appropriate religious behavior in modern liberal society. This chapter traces the normative views of human identity and power animating these scholarly formulations of magic.
Randall G. Styers
- Published in print:
- 2004
- Published Online:
- January 2005
- ISBN:
- 9780195151077
- eISBN:
- 9780199835263
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0195151070.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
The chapter begins by exploring various psychological theories in which magic is seen as a product of inchoate or inordinate desire. Whether asserting that magic is socially reactionary and ...
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The chapter begins by exploring various psychological theories in which magic is seen as a product of inchoate or inordinate desire. Whether asserting that magic is socially reactionary and authoritarian or fundamentally anti-social and anarchical, theorists have regularly seen magic as a threat to a productive social order. The dominant scholarly construction of magic has legitimated two distinct channels through which human needs are to be constructed and resolved: a spiritualized religious realm (to shape certain aspects of human identity and assuage internal tensions) and a rationalized scientific realm (to govern appropriate manipulation of the material world). With magic deployed as the stigmatized mediator between religion and science, the secularizing separation between these two channels is reinforced, and capitalism and Western science are relegated broad instrumental control of the material world. Even recent scholarly efforts to reverse the negative valence of magic maintain important elements of the traditional distinctions among religion, magic, and science and reinforce the paradigm in which rationalized religion and science are aligned with capitalist social relations.Less
The chapter begins by exploring various psychological theories in which magic is seen as a product of inchoate or inordinate desire. Whether asserting that magic is socially reactionary and authoritarian or fundamentally anti-social and anarchical, theorists have regularly seen magic as a threat to a productive social order. The dominant scholarly construction of magic has legitimated two distinct channels through which human needs are to be constructed and resolved: a spiritualized religious realm (to shape certain aspects of human identity and assuage internal tensions) and a rationalized scientific realm (to govern appropriate manipulation of the material world). With magic deployed as the stigmatized mediator between religion and science, the secularizing separation between these two channels is reinforced, and capitalism and Western science are relegated broad instrumental control of the material world. Even recent scholarly efforts to reverse the negative valence of magic maintain important elements of the traditional distinctions among religion, magic, and science and reinforce the paradigm in which rationalized religion and science are aligned with capitalist social relations.
Dieter Nohlen, Bernard Thibaut, and Michael Krennerich (eds)
- Published in print:
- 1999
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198296454
- eISBN:
- 9780191600036
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198296452.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Reference
Elections in Africa is the first volume of a series of election data handbooks published by OUP; it covers all the 53 states in Africa. Elections have always been an integral part of ...
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Elections in Africa is the first volume of a series of election data handbooks published by OUP; it covers all the 53 states in Africa. Elections have always been an integral part of post‐independence African politics and have assumed the utmost importance in the course of recent democratization processes. However, comparative research on political development in Africa lacks reliable electoral data. Elections in Africa fills this gap. Following the overall structure of the series, an initial comparative introduction on elections and electoral systems is followed by chapters on each state of the region. These contributions examine the evolution of institutional and electoral arrangements from independence to the present (1999), and provide systematic surveys of the up‐to‐date electoral provisions and their historical development. Exhaustive statistics on national elections (presidential, parliamentary, and constitutional assembly), referendums and coups d’état are included within each chapter; these cover electoral bodies and voting, electoral participation of parties and alliances, vote distribution, parliamentary composition, and power holders. The data are presented in the same systematic manner for all countries in order to provide electoral statistics in line with internationally established standards of documentation, so that the data can be easily compared. The book, therefore, provides a definitive and comprehensive set of data on elections in order to facilitate comparative research. Together with the other books of this series, Elections in Africa is a highly reliable resource for historical and cross‐national comparisons of elections and electoral systems worldwide.Less
Elections in Africa is the first volume of a series of election data handbooks published by OUP; it covers all the 53 states in Africa. Elections have always been an integral part of post‐independence African politics and have assumed the utmost importance in the course of recent democratization processes. However, comparative research on political development in Africa lacks reliable electoral data. Elections in Africa fills this gap. Following the overall structure of the series, an initial comparative introduction on elections and electoral systems is followed by chapters on each state of the region. These contributions examine the evolution of institutional and electoral arrangements from independence to the present (1999), and provide systematic surveys of the up‐to‐date electoral provisions and their historical development. Exhaustive statistics on national elections (presidential, parliamentary, and constitutional assembly), referendums and coups d’état are included within each chapter; these cover electoral bodies and voting, electoral participation of parties and alliances, vote distribution, parliamentary composition, and power holders. The data are presented in the same systematic manner for all countries in order to provide electoral statistics in line with internationally established standards of documentation, so that the data can be easily compared. The book, therefore, provides a definitive and comprehensive set of data on elections in order to facilitate comparative research. Together with the other books of this series, Elections in Africa is a highly reliable resource for historical and cross‐national comparisons of elections and electoral systems worldwide.
Terry Macdonald
- Published in print:
- 2008
- Published Online:
- September 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199235001
- eISBN:
- 9780191715822
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199235001.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory, International Relations and Politics
A pressing question at the forefront of current global political debates is: how can we salvage the democratic project in the context of globalization? In recent years, political activists have ...
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A pressing question at the forefront of current global political debates is: how can we salvage the democratic project in the context of globalization? In recent years, political activists have mounted high-profile campaigns for the democratization of powerful international institutions such as the World Bank and IMF, and for greater ‘corporate accountability’. In turn, many of the NGOs linked to these campaigns have themselves faced demands for greater democratic legitimacy. Through reflecting on the democratic dilemmas surrounding the political power of global NGOs, this book challenges the state-centric theoretical assumptions that have underpinned the established democratic theories of both ‘cosmopolitan’ and ‘communitarian’ liberals. In particular, it challenges the widespread assumption that ‘sovereign’ power, ‘bounded’ (national or global) societies, and ‘electoral’ processes are essential institutional foundations of a democratic system. The book then re-thinks the democratic project from its conceptual foundations, posing a number of questions. What needs to be controlled? Who ought to control it? How could they do so? In answering these questions, the book develops a theoretical model of representative democracy that is focused on plural (state and non-state) actors rather than on unitary state structures. It elaborates a democratic framework based on the new theoretical concepts of public power, stakeholder communities, and non-electoral representation, and illustrates the practical implications of these proposals for projects of global institutional reform.Less
A pressing question at the forefront of current global political debates is: how can we salvage the democratic project in the context of globalization? In recent years, political activists have mounted high-profile campaigns for the democratization of powerful international institutions such as the World Bank and IMF, and for greater ‘corporate accountability’. In turn, many of the NGOs linked to these campaigns have themselves faced demands for greater democratic legitimacy. Through reflecting on the democratic dilemmas surrounding the political power of global NGOs, this book challenges the state-centric theoretical assumptions that have underpinned the established democratic theories of both ‘cosmopolitan’ and ‘communitarian’ liberals. In particular, it challenges the widespread assumption that ‘sovereign’ power, ‘bounded’ (national or global) societies, and ‘electoral’ processes are essential institutional foundations of a democratic system. The book then re-thinks the democratic project from its conceptual foundations, posing a number of questions. What needs to be controlled? Who ought to control it? How could they do so? In answering these questions, the book develops a theoretical model of representative democracy that is focused on plural (state and non-state) actors rather than on unitary state structures. It elaborates a democratic framework based on the new theoretical concepts of public power, stakeholder communities, and non-electoral representation, and illustrates the practical implications of these proposals for projects of global institutional reform.
David Armstrong
- Published in print:
- 1993
- Published Online:
- November 2003
- ISBN:
- 9780198275282
- eISBN:
- 9780191598739
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198275285.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, International Relations and Politics
This study examines the impact of revolutionary states upon international society. These states have always posed major problems for the achievement of world order: revolution is often accompanied by ...
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This study examines the impact of revolutionary states upon international society. These states have always posed major problems for the achievement of world order: revolution is often accompanied by international as well as civil conflict, while revolutionary doctrines have proven to be highly disruptive of the existing structure of international politics. Conversely, the prevailing international order presents fundamental difficulties for some revolutionary states. The belief system on which its revolution was founded and which legitimized the assumption of state power by the revolutionary elite is certain to run counter to the prevailing political doctrines of many other states. David Armstrong asks whether revolutionary states are ‘socialized’ into adopting acceptable patterns of international behaviour, or whether it is the international society that is forced to change when these new states appear. He looks in detail at the French, American, and Russian revolutions and at several post‐1945 revolutionary states. He also examines the relationship between revolutionary states and the principal ordering devices of an international society: international law, diplomacy, and the balance of power. His book is a significant contribution to the ‘English School’ literature, whose central concept is that of an international society. It shows how the interaction between revolutionary states and the established norms, rules, and institutions of international society works to produce change in both the revolutionary state and international society itself. As such it elucidates the dynamic aspects of international society.Less
This study examines the impact of revolutionary states upon international society. These states have always posed major problems for the achievement of world order: revolution is often accompanied by international as well as civil conflict, while revolutionary doctrines have proven to be highly disruptive of the existing structure of international politics. Conversely, the prevailing international order presents fundamental difficulties for some revolutionary states. The belief system on which its revolution was founded and which legitimized the assumption of state power by the revolutionary elite is certain to run counter to the prevailing political doctrines of many other states. David Armstrong asks whether revolutionary states are ‘socialized’ into adopting acceptable patterns of international behaviour, or whether it is the international society that is forced to change when these new states appear. He looks in detail at the French, American, and Russian revolutions and at several post‐1945 revolutionary states. He also examines the relationship between revolutionary states and the principal ordering devices of an international society: international law, diplomacy, and the balance of power. His book is a significant contribution to the ‘English School’ literature, whose central concept is that of an international society. It shows how the interaction between revolutionary states and the established norms, rules, and institutions of international society works to produce change in both the revolutionary state and international society itself. As such it elucidates the dynamic aspects of international society.
Alexander Bird
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199227013
- eISBN:
- 9780191711121
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199227013.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
What are the laws of nature, and what explains their existence? This book develops the proposal that the laws of nature are grounded in the essences of properties. It is argued that fundamental ...
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What are the laws of nature, and what explains their existence? This book develops the proposal that the laws of nature are grounded in the essences of properties. It is argued that fundamental natural properties have dispositional essences — they are potencies (pure powers). After explaining this proposal, the book goes on to show how this accounts for the existence of the laws of nature. A distinctive feature of this account is that it ensures that the laws of nature are metaphysically necessary. This account has advantages over the regularity and nomic necessitation accounts associated with Lewis and Armstrong, while the dispositional essentialist view of properties has corresponding advantages over the categoricalist view of properties, according to which properties are quidditistic and do not have qualitative essences, merely primitive identity and difference. The relationship between potencies and modality, and also intentionality is explored. Other potential criticisms are raised and the view defended against them. For example it is claimed that if all properties are potencies, then a vicious regress ensues; it is shown that this does not follow. Geometrical and other ‘structural’ properties are raised as counterexamples, being properties that seem categorical; it is argued that this is the case only if one takes a particular view of the role of spacetime in physical theories. It is held that laws are metaphysically contingent whereas dispositional essentialism makes them necessary; it is argued that the contingency of laws is an illusion. An account of laws is developed in the face of Mumford's claim that neither dispositional essentialism nor science has need of laws.Less
What are the laws of nature, and what explains their existence? This book develops the proposal that the laws of nature are grounded in the essences of properties. It is argued that fundamental natural properties have dispositional essences — they are potencies (pure powers). After explaining this proposal, the book goes on to show how this accounts for the existence of the laws of nature. A distinctive feature of this account is that it ensures that the laws of nature are metaphysically necessary. This account has advantages over the regularity and nomic necessitation accounts associated with Lewis and Armstrong, while the dispositional essentialist view of properties has corresponding advantages over the categoricalist view of properties, according to which properties are quidditistic and do not have qualitative essences, merely primitive identity and difference. The relationship between potencies and modality, and also intentionality is explored. Other potential criticisms are raised and the view defended against them. For example it is claimed that if all properties are potencies, then a vicious regress ensues; it is shown that this does not follow. Geometrical and other ‘structural’ properties are raised as counterexamples, being properties that seem categorical; it is argued that this is the case only if one takes a particular view of the role of spacetime in physical theories. It is held that laws are metaphysically contingent whereas dispositional essentialism makes them necessary; it is argued that the contingency of laws is an illusion. An account of laws is developed in the face of Mumford's claim that neither dispositional essentialism nor science has need of laws.
Miranda Fricker
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780198237907
- eISBN:
- 9780191706844
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198237907.001.0001
- Subject:
- Philosophy, Metaphysics/Epistemology
Justice is one of the oldest and most central themes of philosophy, but sometimes we would do well to focus instead on injustice. In epistemology, the very idea that there is a first-order ethical ...
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Justice is one of the oldest and most central themes of philosophy, but sometimes we would do well to focus instead on injustice. In epistemology, the very idea that there is a first-order ethical dimension to our epistemic practices — the idea that there is such a thing as epistemic justice — remains obscure until we adjust the philosophical lens so that we see through to the negative space that is epistemic injustice. This book argues that there is a distinctively epistemic genus of injustice, in which someone is wronged specifically in their capacity as a knower, wronged therefore in a capacity essential to human value. The book identifies two forms of epistemic injustice: testimonial injustice and hermeneutical injustice. In doing so, it charts the ethical dimension of two fundamental epistemic practices: gaining knowledge by being told and making sense of our social experiences. As the account unfolds, the book travels through a range of philosophical problems. Thus, the book finds an analysis of social power; an account of prejudicial stereotypes; a characterization of two hybrid intellectual-ethical virtues; a revised account of the State of Nature used in genealogical explanations of the concept of knowledge; a discussion of objectification and ‘silencing’; and a framework for a virtue epistemological account of testimony. The book reveals epistemic injustice as a potent yet largely silent dimension of discrimination, analyses the wrong it perpetrates, and constructs two hybrid ethical-intellectual virtues of epistemic justice which aim to forestall it.Less
Justice is one of the oldest and most central themes of philosophy, but sometimes we would do well to focus instead on injustice. In epistemology, the very idea that there is a first-order ethical dimension to our epistemic practices — the idea that there is such a thing as epistemic justice — remains obscure until we adjust the philosophical lens so that we see through to the negative space that is epistemic injustice. This book argues that there is a distinctively epistemic genus of injustice, in which someone is wronged specifically in their capacity as a knower, wronged therefore in a capacity essential to human value. The book identifies two forms of epistemic injustice: testimonial injustice and hermeneutical injustice. In doing so, it charts the ethical dimension of two fundamental epistemic practices: gaining knowledge by being told and making sense of our social experiences. As the account unfolds, the book travels through a range of philosophical problems. Thus, the book finds an analysis of social power; an account of prejudicial stereotypes; a characterization of two hybrid intellectual-ethical virtues; a revised account of the State of Nature used in genealogical explanations of the concept of knowledge; a discussion of objectification and ‘silencing’; and a framework for a virtue epistemological account of testimony. The book reveals epistemic injustice as a potent yet largely silent dimension of discrimination, analyses the wrong it perpetrates, and constructs two hybrid ethical-intellectual virtues of epistemic justice which aim to forestall it.
James Davison Hunter
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199730803
- eISBN:
- 9780199777082
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199730803.003.0007
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
Populism is organic to American Christianity, yet on the other hand, populism is, in some ways, at odds with what we know about the most historically significant dynamics of world-changing. In other ...
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Populism is organic to American Christianity, yet on the other hand, populism is, in some ways, at odds with what we know about the most historically significant dynamics of world-changing. In other words, there is an unavoidable tension between pursuing excellence and the social consequences of its achievement; between leadership and elitism that all too often comes from it. The antidotes to “seizing power” in a new way is a better understanding of “faithful presence.”Less
Populism is organic to American Christianity, yet on the other hand, populism is, in some ways, at odds with what we know about the most historically significant dynamics of world-changing. In other words, there is an unavoidable tension between pursuing excellence and the social consequences of its achievement; between leadership and elitism that all too often comes from it. The antidotes to “seizing power” in a new way is a better understanding of “faithful presence.”
James Davison Hunter
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- May 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199730803
- eISBN:
- 9780199777082
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199730803.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
When faith and its culture flourish, it does so, in part, because it operates with an implicit view of power in its proper place. When faith and its culture deteriorate, it does so, in part, because ...
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When faith and its culture flourish, it does so, in part, because it operates with an implicit view of power in its proper place. When faith and its culture deteriorate, it does so, in part, because it operates with a view of power that is corrupt.Less
When faith and its culture flourish, it does so, in part, because it operates with an implicit view of power in its proper place. When faith and its culture deteriorate, it does so, in part, because it operates with a view of power that is corrupt.
David O. Clayden
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780198565932
- eISBN:
- 9780191714016
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198565932.003.0018
- Subject:
- Mathematics, History of Mathematics
This chapter presents background information on valves. A valve consists of an evacuated glass envelope containing a number of electrodes. These are connected to the outside by wires passing though ...
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This chapter presents background information on valves. A valve consists of an evacuated glass envelope containing a number of electrodes. These are connected to the outside by wires passing though special seals. The innermost electrode is the cathode, which consists of a metal tube coated with a material that emits electrons when it is heated. In the simplest form of valve, called a diode, the cathode is surrounded by a metal cylinder called the anode. If the anode is connected to a voltage that is positive relative to the cathode, the anode attracts electrons from the cathode and a current flows. Valves as amplifiers and switches, power consumption, and valve specifications are described.Less
This chapter presents background information on valves. A valve consists of an evacuated glass envelope containing a number of electrodes. These are connected to the outside by wires passing though special seals. The innermost electrode is the cathode, which consists of a metal tube coated with a material that emits electrons when it is heated. In the simplest form of valve, called a diode, the cathode is surrounded by a metal cylinder called the anode. If the anode is connected to a voltage that is positive relative to the cathode, the anode attracts electrons from the cathode and a current flows. Valves as amplifiers and switches, power consumption, and valve specifications are described.
Juan Luis Vázquez
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780199202973
- eISBN:
- 9780191707919
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199202973.001.0001
- Subject:
- Mathematics, Applied Mathematics
This book is concerned with the quantitative aspects of the theory of nonlinear diffusion equations; equations which can be seen as nonlinear variations of the classical heat equation. They appear as ...
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This book is concerned with the quantitative aspects of the theory of nonlinear diffusion equations; equations which can be seen as nonlinear variations of the classical heat equation. They appear as mathematical models in different branches of physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering, and are also relevant in differential geometry and relativistic physics. Much of the modern theory of such equations is based on estimates and functional analysis. Concentrating on a class of equations with nonlinearities of power type that lead to degenerate or singular parabolicity (equations of porous medium type), the aim of this book is to obtain sharp a priori estimates and decay rates for general classes of solutions in terms of estimates of particular problems. These estimates are the building blocks in understanding the qualitative theory, and the decay rates pave the way to the fine study of asymptotics. Many technically relevant questions are presented and analyzed in detail. A systematic picture of the most relevant phenomena is obtained for the equations under study, including time decay, smoothing, extinction in finite time, and delayed regularity.Less
This book is concerned with the quantitative aspects of the theory of nonlinear diffusion equations; equations which can be seen as nonlinear variations of the classical heat equation. They appear as mathematical models in different branches of physics, chemistry, biology, and engineering, and are also relevant in differential geometry and relativistic physics. Much of the modern theory of such equations is based on estimates and functional analysis. Concentrating on a class of equations with nonlinearities of power type that lead to degenerate or singular parabolicity (equations of porous medium type), the aim of this book is to obtain sharp a priori estimates and decay rates for general classes of solutions in terms of estimates of particular problems. These estimates are the building blocks in understanding the qualitative theory, and the decay rates pave the way to the fine study of asymptotics. Many technically relevant questions are presented and analyzed in detail. A systematic picture of the most relevant phenomena is obtained for the equations under study, including time decay, smoothing, extinction in finite time, and delayed regularity.
Frank Lovett
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199579419
- eISBN:
- 9780191722837
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199579419.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, Political Theory
In all societies, past and present, many persons and groups have been subject to domination. Properly understood, domination is a great evil, the suffering of which ought to be minimized as far as ...
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In all societies, past and present, many persons and groups have been subject to domination. Properly understood, domination is a great evil, the suffering of which ought to be minimized as far as possible. Surprisingly, however, political and social theorists have failed to provide a detailed analysis of the concept of domination in general. This study aims to redress this lacuna. It argues first that domination should be understood as a condition experienced by persons or groups to the extent that they are dependent on a social relationship in which some other person or group wields arbitrary power over them; this is termed the “arbitrary power conception” of domination. Second, it argues that we should regard it as wrong to perpetrate or permit unnecessary domination and, thus, that as a matter of justice the political and social institutions and practices of any society should be organized so as to minimize avoidable domination; this is termed “justice as minimizing domination (JMD),” a conception of social justice that connects with more familiar civic republican accounts of freedom as nondomination. In developing these arguments, this study employs a variety of methodological techniques — including conceptual analysis, formal modeling, social theory, and moral philosophy; existing accounts of dependency, power, social convention, and so on are clarified, expanded, or revised along the way. While of special interest to contemporary civic republicans, this study should appeal to a broad audience with diverse methodological and substantive interests.Less
In all societies, past and present, many persons and groups have been subject to domination. Properly understood, domination is a great evil, the suffering of which ought to be minimized as far as possible. Surprisingly, however, political and social theorists have failed to provide a detailed analysis of the concept of domination in general. This study aims to redress this lacuna. It argues first that domination should be understood as a condition experienced by persons or groups to the extent that they are dependent on a social relationship in which some other person or group wields arbitrary power over them; this is termed the “arbitrary power conception” of domination. Second, it argues that we should regard it as wrong to perpetrate or permit unnecessary domination and, thus, that as a matter of justice the political and social institutions and practices of any society should be organized so as to minimize avoidable domination; this is termed “justice as minimizing domination (JMD),” a conception of social justice that connects with more familiar civic republican accounts of freedom as nondomination. In developing these arguments, this study employs a variety of methodological techniques — including conceptual analysis, formal modeling, social theory, and moral philosophy; existing accounts of dependency, power, social convention, and so on are clarified, expanded, or revised along the way. While of special interest to contemporary civic republicans, this study should appeal to a broad audience with diverse methodological and substantive interests.
Steven Gunn, David Grummitt, and Hans Cools
- Published in print:
- 2007
- Published Online:
- January 2008
- ISBN:
- 9780199207503
- eISBN:
- 9780191708848
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199207503.003.015
- Subject:
- History, European Early Modern History
This chapter concludes the discussion of the nobility by drawing out the similarities and differences between the role of noblemen in war and the effects of war on noble power in England and the ...
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This chapter concludes the discussion of the nobility by drawing out the similarities and differences between the role of noblemen in war and the effects of war on noble power in England and the Netherlands. War was not the sole key to noble power, but it remained very important through the resources, skills, and social power noblemen deployed in sustaining their princes' wars; through the offices, influence, and rewards they gained in war; through the relationships with others forged in war; and through the honourable reputations they won or lost. In some respects, the independent military power of the nobility in both polities declined over the period. But in helping to develop new forms of state power, the nobility built its own influence into them at many points.Less
This chapter concludes the discussion of the nobility by drawing out the similarities and differences between the role of noblemen in war and the effects of war on noble power in England and the Netherlands. War was not the sole key to noble power, but it remained very important through the resources, skills, and social power noblemen deployed in sustaining their princes' wars; through the offices, influence, and rewards they gained in war; through the relationships with others forged in war; and through the honourable reputations they won or lost. In some respects, the independent military power of the nobility in both polities declined over the period. But in helping to develop new forms of state power, the nobility built its own influence into them at many points.
Roger W. Shuy
- Published in print:
- 2005
- Published Online:
- September 2007
- ISBN:
- 9780195181661
- eISBN:
- 9780199788477
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195181661.001.0001
- Subject:
- Linguistics, Sociolinguistics / Anthropological Linguistics
This book describes and illustrates eleven powerful conversational strategies used by undercover police officers and cooperating witnesses who secretly tape-record targets in criminal investigations. ...
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This book describes and illustrates eleven powerful conversational strategies used by undercover police officers and cooperating witnesses who secretly tape-record targets in criminal investigations. Twelve actual criminal case studies are used as examples. These strategies creating illusion of guilt include the apparently deliberate use of semantic ambiguity, blocking the targets’ words (by creating static on the tape, interrupting them, speaking on their behalf, and manipulating the off/on switch); rapidly changing the subject before targets can respond (the “hit and run” strategy); contaminating the tape with irrelevant information that can make targets appear to be guilty; camouflaging illegality by making actions appear to be legal; isolating targets from important information that they need in order to make informed choices; inaccurately restating things the target has said; withholding crucial information from targets; lying to targets about critical information; and scripting targets in what to say on tape. These conversational strategies gain power from the fact that the targets do not know that they are being recorded, and often let things go right by them during the discourse. Nor do they know that the real audience of the conversations consists of later jury listeners, who do not know the full context of these conversations. Unlike everyday, unrecorded conversation, the most critical listening takes place at a future time and under very different circumstances. It is shown that undercover officers and their cooperating witnesses make use of essentially the same conversational strategies.Less
This book describes and illustrates eleven powerful conversational strategies used by undercover police officers and cooperating witnesses who secretly tape-record targets in criminal investigations. Twelve actual criminal case studies are used as examples. These strategies creating illusion of guilt include the apparently deliberate use of semantic ambiguity, blocking the targets’ words (by creating static on the tape, interrupting them, speaking on their behalf, and manipulating the off/on switch); rapidly changing the subject before targets can respond (the “hit and run” strategy); contaminating the tape with irrelevant information that can make targets appear to be guilty; camouflaging illegality by making actions appear to be legal; isolating targets from important information that they need in order to make informed choices; inaccurately restating things the target has said; withholding crucial information from targets; lying to targets about critical information; and scripting targets in what to say on tape. These conversational strategies gain power from the fact that the targets do not know that they are being recorded, and often let things go right by them during the discourse. Nor do they know that the real audience of the conversations consists of later jury listeners, who do not know the full context of these conversations. Unlike everyday, unrecorded conversation, the most critical listening takes place at a future time and under very different circumstances. It is shown that undercover officers and their cooperating witnesses make use of essentially the same conversational strategies.
John McCormick
- Published in print:
- 2010
- Published Online:
- September 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780199556212
- eISBN:
- 9780191721830
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199556212.001.0001
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union, International Relations and Politics
This book attempts to identify and outline the political, economic, and social norms and values associated with Europe and Europeans. It argues that regardless of the doubts associated with the ...
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This book attempts to identify and outline the political, economic, and social norms and values associated with Europe and Europeans. It argues that regardless of the doubts associated with the exercise of European integration and the work of the European Union, and regardless of residual identities with states and nations, Europeans have much in common. The opening chapters deal with the historical development of European ideas, and are followed by chapters addressing European attitudes towards the state (including a rejection of state‐based nationalism, new ideas about patriotism and citizenship, and the importance of cosmopolitanism), the characteristics of politics and government in Europe (with an emphasis on communitarianism and the effects of the parliamentary system of government), European economic models (including the importance of welfarism and sustainable development), European social models, European attitudes towards values such as multiculturalism and secularism, and Europeanist views in regard to international relations (emphasizing civilian power and multiculturalism).Less
This book attempts to identify and outline the political, economic, and social norms and values associated with Europe and Europeans. It argues that regardless of the doubts associated with the exercise of European integration and the work of the European Union, and regardless of residual identities with states and nations, Europeans have much in common. The opening chapters deal with the historical development of European ideas, and are followed by chapters addressing European attitudes towards the state (including a rejection of state‐based nationalism, new ideas about patriotism and citizenship, and the importance of cosmopolitanism), the characteristics of politics and government in Europe (with an emphasis on communitarianism and the effects of the parliamentary system of government), European economic models (including the importance of welfarism and sustainable development), European social models, European attitudes towards values such as multiculturalism and secularism, and Europeanist views in regard to international relations (emphasizing civilian power and multiculturalism).
Jan Zielonka
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780199292219
- eISBN:
- 9780191603754
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0199292213.003.0003
- Subject:
- Political Science, European Union
This chapter examines the way the EU accession process contributed to greater convergence across the old East-West divide. It argues that the eastern enlargement was an impressive exercise in empire ...
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This chapter examines the way the EU accession process contributed to greater convergence across the old East-West divide. It argues that the eastern enlargement was an impressive exercise in empire building. The Union tried to assert political and economic control over that unstable and impoverished neighborhood. However, this imperial exercise lacked a broader strategic vision — it was prone to parochial pressures and its implementation was fairly benign. The countries of Eastern Europe had to comply with an ever growing list of conditions, but were given access to the EU’s decision-making and resources at the end of the accession process.Less
This chapter examines the way the EU accession process contributed to greater convergence across the old East-West divide. It argues that the eastern enlargement was an impressive exercise in empire building. The Union tried to assert political and economic control over that unstable and impoverished neighborhood. However, this imperial exercise lacked a broader strategic vision — it was prone to parochial pressures and its implementation was fairly benign. The countries of Eastern Europe had to comply with an ever growing list of conditions, but were given access to the EU’s decision-making and resources at the end of the accession process.
Debra L. Dodson
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780198296744
- eISBN:
- 9780191603709
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198296746.003.0010
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
Women’s health policy united women across party lines in the 103rd and yielded numerous victories. These successes continued a trend established in earlier Congresses and, relatively speaking, would ...
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Women’s health policy united women across party lines in the 103rd and yielded numerous victories. These successes continued a trend established in earlier Congresses and, relatively speaking, would not come under attack in the 104th when almost every other political gain previously made by women was vulnerable. As such, juxtaposition of women’s health case studies with the reproductive rights case studies allows us to go once again beyond the simple question of ‘Do women make a difference?’ to explore not only how the confluence of individual, institutional, and cultural factors gives meaning to gender and shapes the probabilistic relationship between descriptive and substantive representation of women over time and across policy areas, but also to suggest strategies for advancing substantive representation regardless of women’s proportional presence. The results illustrate the value of diversity and suggest strategies that can sustain unity amid diversity. They suggest that in addition to increasing women’s presence, substantive representation of women will be facilitated by raising the gender consciousness of women in the mass public, by reinforcing awareness (and fear) of the gender gap, and by women’s advancement within the institutional hierarchy. In short, even with a ‘mom and apple pie’ issue, making a difference requires efforts by women inside the Congress to put matters on the agenda and the mobilization of women outside the institution to give legitimacy and political teeth to demands that challenge masculinist values.Less
Women’s health policy united women across party lines in the 103rd and yielded numerous victories. These successes continued a trend established in earlier Congresses and, relatively speaking, would not come under attack in the 104th when almost every other political gain previously made by women was vulnerable. As such, juxtaposition of women’s health case studies with the reproductive rights case studies allows us to go once again beyond the simple question of ‘Do women make a difference?’ to explore not only how the confluence of individual, institutional, and cultural factors gives meaning to gender and shapes the probabilistic relationship between descriptive and substantive representation of women over time and across policy areas, but also to suggest strategies for advancing substantive representation regardless of women’s proportional presence. The results illustrate the value of diversity and suggest strategies that can sustain unity amid diversity. They suggest that in addition to increasing women’s presence, substantive representation of women will be facilitated by raising the gender consciousness of women in the mass public, by reinforcing awareness (and fear) of the gender gap, and by women’s advancement within the institutional hierarchy. In short, even with a ‘mom and apple pie’ issue, making a difference requires efforts by women inside the Congress to put matters on the agenda and the mobilization of women outside the institution to give legitimacy and political teeth to demands that challenge masculinist values.
Debra L. Dodson
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780198296744
- eISBN:
- 9780191603709
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198296746.003.0011
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
Women’s health did not suffer the same endless litany of political defeats as other policy areas in the Republican-controlled 104th. While the case studies of women’s health research funding, breast ...
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Women’s health did not suffer the same endless litany of political defeats as other policy areas in the Republican-controlled 104th. While the case studies of women’s health research funding, breast cancer screening, and women veterans’ health suggest that women’s presence within the institution is important for ensuring substantive representation of women, they also suggest that other factors play a critical role in giving meaning to women’s presence. These include the political environment of Congress, the ideological perspective of those who hold positional power, and the extra-institutional pressure generated from the gender gap in the mass public, which gives legitimacy to action on behalf of women’s health among male members concerned about the next election.Less
Women’s health did not suffer the same endless litany of political defeats as other policy areas in the Republican-controlled 104th. While the case studies of women’s health research funding, breast cancer screening, and women veterans’ health suggest that women’s presence within the institution is important for ensuring substantive representation of women, they also suggest that other factors play a critical role in giving meaning to women’s presence. These include the political environment of Congress, the ideological perspective of those who hold positional power, and the extra-institutional pressure generated from the gender gap in the mass public, which gives legitimacy to action on behalf of women’s health among male members concerned about the next election.
Debra L. Dodson
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780198296744
- eISBN:
- 9780191603709
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198296746.003.0012
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
This chapter deconstructs gender differences to explore the contested issues surrounding gender difference, when the politics of presence converged with partisan politics in the struggle over health ...
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This chapter deconstructs gender differences to explore the contested issues surrounding gender difference, when the politics of presence converged with partisan politics in the struggle over health care reform during the Democratic-controlled 103rd Congress. The impact of the institutional environment on women’s agenda and actions, along with differences in environmental pressures across parties and committees, are explored. The analysis attempts to move beyond the simple question of whether women make a difference to an understanding of how political environments, structured by partisanship and steeped in masculinist values, affect and can be affected by the feminale. The case study suggests that one cannot truly understand gender differences in an institutional vacuum, even as it forces us to confront the relationship between gender difference and substantive representation of women, and to consider the value of the concept of feminist protest in understanding partisan differences in gender difference and women’s impact.Less
This chapter deconstructs gender differences to explore the contested issues surrounding gender difference, when the politics of presence converged with partisan politics in the struggle over health care reform during the Democratic-controlled 103rd Congress. The impact of the institutional environment on women’s agenda and actions, along with differences in environmental pressures across parties and committees, are explored. The analysis attempts to move beyond the simple question of whether women make a difference to an understanding of how political environments, structured by partisanship and steeped in masculinist values, affect and can be affected by the feminale. The case study suggests that one cannot truly understand gender differences in an institutional vacuum, even as it forces us to confront the relationship between gender difference and substantive representation of women, and to consider the value of the concept of feminist protest in understanding partisan differences in gender difference and women’s impact.
Debra L. Dodson
- Published in print:
- 2006
- Published Online:
- May 2006
- ISBN:
- 9780198296744
- eISBN:
- 9780191603709
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/0198296746.003.0013
- Subject:
- Political Science, Comparative Politics
The story of health insurance reform in the 104th brings to life many of the contested issues surrounding gender difference in impact. It illustrates the importance of going beyond quantitative ...
More
The story of health insurance reform in the 104th brings to life many of the contested issues surrounding gender difference in impact. It illustrates the importance of going beyond quantitative evidence of gender difference to look carefully at the substance of those differences that emerge, to understand their relationship to the broader political context, and to explicitly consider the motivations belying difference. That those who were seen as advocates for women in the health care reform battles of the 103rd played little role in health insurance reform, while some of the more visible vocal women critics of the Clinton plan led the effort some saw as ‘radical’, that the prime [female] motivator and facilitator of the effort was not seen as driven by gendered forces or even connected with women’s organizations, and that Republican women who had supported women’s health also supported a measure likely to have reversed state mandates protecting women’s health benefits all make health insurance reform a unique laboratory for addressing the contested issues that surround difference. The conclusions suggest a growing gap between gender difference and the standards of third wave feminism, the need for an active engaged women’s movement to counter the threat posed by essentialist assumptions that grant legitimacy to any pronouncement women make on behalf of women, the contribution differences in the masculinist cultures of parties may make toward partisan differences in the manifestation of feminist protest, and they caution against the gendered consequences of ostensibly gender-neutral institutional procedures.Less
The story of health insurance reform in the 104th brings to life many of the contested issues surrounding gender difference in impact. It illustrates the importance of going beyond quantitative evidence of gender difference to look carefully at the substance of those differences that emerge, to understand their relationship to the broader political context, and to explicitly consider the motivations belying difference. That those who were seen as advocates for women in the health care reform battles of the 103rd played little role in health insurance reform, while some of the more visible vocal women critics of the Clinton plan led the effort some saw as ‘radical’, that the prime [female] motivator and facilitator of the effort was not seen as driven by gendered forces or even connected with women’s organizations, and that Republican women who had supported women’s health also supported a measure likely to have reversed state mandates protecting women’s health benefits all make health insurance reform a unique laboratory for addressing the contested issues that surround difference. The conclusions suggest a growing gap between gender difference and the standards of third wave feminism, the need for an active engaged women’s movement to counter the threat posed by essentialist assumptions that grant legitimacy to any pronouncement women make on behalf of women, the contribution differences in the masculinist cultures of parties may make toward partisan differences in the manifestation of feminist protest, and they caution against the gendered consequences of ostensibly gender-neutral institutional procedures.
