Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Redistribution or Recognition?: A Political-Philosophical Exchange



Title: Redistribution or Recognition?: A Political-Philosophical Exchange

Author: Nancy Fraser , Axel Honneth

ISBN: 978-1859844922

Binding: Paper

Date: 2003

Publisher: Verso

Number of Pages: 273

Price: £16.00

"Recognition" has become a keyword of our time, but its relation to economic "redistribution" remains unclear. This volume stages a debate between two philosophers, one North American, the other German, who hold different views of the relation of redistribution to recognition. Axel Honneth conceives recognition as the fundamental, over-arching moral category, potentially encompassing redistribution, while Nancy Fraser argues that the two categories are both fundamental and mutually irreducible. In alternating chapters the authors respond to each other's criticisms, and offer a lively dialogue on identity politics, capitalism and social justice. The volume is a dramatic riposte to those who proclaim the death of "grand theory".

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