Soziale Hoffnung, liberale Ironie

This volume responds to the growing interest in Richard Rorty as a political thinker and critic of the academic left. It introduces Rorty's understanding of politics and democracy and shows his relevance for current debates in the context of the erosion of liberal democracy. Rorty opens up a perspective that addresses both the impetus of postmodern individualism and the goal of a classless society. The contributions this book contains show that, as a political thinker, Rorty passionately took sides in favour of social democratic reform policy and, at the same time, sought to unravel the political antagonisms currently under discussion. These include the relationship between idproduct and redistribution policies, the conflicts between national solidarity and human rights universalism, and the tension between state policy and global interdependence. Richard Rorty was a provocative political thinker who combined class political social criticism with postmodern irony. His flair for the problems of the new left and his original perspective on liberalism, solidarity and human rights provide us with important impetus for current debates on the state and democracy. With contributions by Susana de Castro, Susan Dieleman, Marie-Luisa Frick, Jens Hacke, Christoph Held, Dirk Jörke, Ulf Schulenberg, Christian Schwaabe, Torben Schwuchow, Martin Seeliger and Veith Selk.