John Gray and the problem of utopia / John Hoffman.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hoffman, John, 1944-

Series:

Political philosophy now

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Gray, John, 1948-.

Utopias.

Physical Description:

203 pages ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Cardiff : University of Wales Press, 2008.

Summary:

This book is concerned with the work of John Gray, currently Professor of European Thought at the London School of Economics, and a controversial and widely read contemporary philosopher. John Gray and the Problem of Utopia links a critique of his views to an attempt to reconstruct the concept of utopia so that the notion is compatible with history within the context of globalisation, war, violence and multiculturalism. Gray's views of the Enlightenment, Marxism and humanism are challenged and it is argued that his concept of a modus vivendi between states embodies the very universalism he seeks to dismiss. Here, John Hoffman argues that Gray's deep pessimism is unwarranted and his attack on the notion of progress is untenable.

It is the great strength of John Gray's work that he addresses these topics in a clear and accessible fashion; however, he dismisses efforts to address globalisation, war, violence and multiculturalism as 'utopian' in a way that is misleading and pessimistic, embracing a notion of utopia that is itself traditionalist and problematic. The author of this book seeks to challenge these assumptions in a clear, accessible way, mindful of the way in which existing literature treats the question of utopia in a traditionalist manner or reconstructs it as a less penetrable, highly specialised concept.

Contents:

1 The Anti-Utopianism of John Gray 11

2 The Traditional View of Utopia 27

3 Utopia and Dualism 39

4 Marxism and Utopia 55

5 The Problem of the Market 74

6 The Caricature of Marxism 93

7 The Problem of the State 107

8 The Inescapable Character of Universalism 122

9 Globalization 144

10 Egalitarianism and Multiculturalism 162

11 Reconstructing Utopia 175.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [195]-199) and index.

ISBN:

9780708320266

0708320260

OCLC:

258085343