Contemporary societies are marked by deep inequalities grounded in
collective failures to recognize the histories, needs, and experiences
of marginalized social groups. What are the strategies that can help
individuals become more responsive to social realities and
perspectives that differ significantly from their own?
In Reimagining Sympathy,Recognizing Difference: Insights from Adam
Smith, Millicent Churcherattends to recent debates over the
imagination as a resource for social and political reform, and
highlights the central relevance of Adam Smith’s voice to these
debates. Smith, best known for his work on economics, may seem an
unlikely figure to draw upon in this context. However, his nuanced
account of ‘sympathy’—conceived as an imaginative and reflective
capacity that develops within and through social experience—greatly
enriches the role of imagination in fostering mutual understanding and
solidarity among a diverse citizenry.
Churcher critically explores and extends Smith’s view that if
sympathy is to bind people together across their differences rather
than divide them, it requires work at the level of individual
practice, as well as the support of wider social structures. By
drawing Smith into conversation with contemporary debates in social
and political theory, this monograph addresses the pressing question
of what is required from individuals and institutionsto remedy abject
failures to recognize and respond ethically to difference.
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Insights from Adam Smith
Produktdetaljer
ISBN
9781786609458
Publisert
2019
Utgave
1. utgave
Utgiver
Bloomsbury USA
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Digital bok
Forfatter