[PDF] Toward A New Political Humanism eBook

Author : Barry F. Seidman
Publisher :
Page : 432 pages
File Size : 27,48 MB
Release : 2004
Category : Philosophy
ISBN :

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In an age when religious (and other) fundamentalisms have made powerful inroads into the political arena secular humanism has an especially important role to play, not just in promoting its ideas but also in converting those ideas into political action. This is the unifying theme of this thoughtful collection of articles by leading humanists, all of whom are already engaged in putting humanist ideals into practice. The editors and contributors alike contend that the time is ripe to go beyond traditional humanist issues regarding religion and superstition to develop an all-encompassing political platform based on the humanist life stance. This should include both political and economic agendas. Toward this goal the authors in this volume offer real-world humanist solutions born out of progressive politics. Among the topics discussed are: the beginnings of modern political humanism, rediscovering Enlightenment ideals, humanist ethics as a basis for activism, secular humanism and liberal perspectives, separation of church and state, a humanist economics, the role of political humanism in America, identity politics from a humanist perspective, humanism's influence on woman's changing role, gay rights, George W. Bush's antihumanist policies, patriotism and humanism, humanism as an antidote to nationalism and as the backbone of a new United Nations, prospects for a global humanism, humanist movements in New Zealand, Nigeria, and the Middle East, humanist solutions to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, humanism as the foundation for human rights and international peace, policy implications of the humanist commitment to science, and other stimulating topics. Unique in its focus on the need for political, economic, and social action, this outstanding collection contains many new ideas and lays the groundwork for a humanist agenda in the 21st century.

Author : Roy Speckhardt
Publisher : Humanist Press
Page : 190 pages
File Size : 36,17 MB
Release : 2015-07-28
Category : Religion
ISBN : 0931779669

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Humanism is “the radical idea that you can be good without a god.” That’s how Roy Speckhardt, the longtime executive director of the American Humanist Association, defines it. His new book, Creating Change Through Humanism, lays out how and why people can lead moral and ethical lives without belief in a higher power. While surveys show that more and more Americans are giving up on religion, merely abandoning traditional religious faith is just one step on a path to a better way of thinking. Speckhardt explains how to take the next steps with the empathy and activism that characterize humanism today. Humanism has inspired generations of individuals to improve themselves, their communities and their country. Creating Change Through Humanism describes how a humanist lifestance has influenced and can continue to advance acceptance, diversity and equality. Humanist ideals pervaded the U.S. from its founding, starting with the innovative idea of separating church and state to maintain a religiously-neutral government. Humanism has continued to propel our nation toward social progress by promoting basic human rights and dignity. The humanist movement, with its forward-thinking outlook and emphasis on critical thinking and self-reflection, has been at the forefront of such pressing social issues as civil rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ equality, responsible scientific freedom, and the environment and population dynamics. Speckhardt interweaves personal stories, including his own, of individuals who have journeyed from organized religion to humanistic convictions. He encourages his readers to be open about their own lack of belief and to become active in social and political causes, so they can put their positive values into action and combat the anti-humanist prejudice propagated by the religious right.

Author : Ken Plummer
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
Page : 207 pages
File Size : 47,51 MB
Release : 2021-09-01
Category : Social Science
ISBN : 1509527982

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We live in a mutilated world and our humanity seems irrevocably damaged. Many critics suggest we have reached the end of humanity. In this challenging book, Ken Plummer suggests that such claims may be premature; instead, what we need is a new transformative understanding of humanity. Critical Humanism critically reflects upon and reimagines humanism for the twenty-first century. What is now required is a fresh, wide-ranging imaginary of an open, worldly, plural and caring humanity. It needs to take a critical stance towards older, often divisive ideas of what it means to be human, while reconnecting to a wider understanding of the rich diversity of life in the pluriverse. In an age of post- and transhumanist turns, Plummer provides a personal, political and passionate call for thinkers, researchers and activists to not turn their backs on humanism. We need instead to create a vital new political imaginary of being human in a connected planet. We simply cannot afford to be anti-human or posthuman. Restoring our belief in humanity has never been more important for edging towards a better world for all.

Author : Thomas de Zengotita
Publisher : Springer
Page : 403 pages
File Size : 44,54 MB
Release : 2018-08-23
Category : Political Science
ISBN : 3319906895

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This book explores the origins of the academic culture wars of the late 20th century and examines their lasting influence on the humanities and progressive politics. It puts us in a position to ask this question: what to make now of those furious debates over postmodernism, multiculturalism, relativism, critical theory, deconstruction, post-structuralism, and all the rest? In an effort to arrive at a fair judgment on that question, the book reaches for an understanding of postmodern theorists by way of two genres they despised and hopes, for that very reason, to do them justice. It tells a story, and in the telling, advances two basic claims: first, that the phenomenological/hermeneutical tradition is the most suitable source of theory for a humanism that aspires to be universal; and, second, that the ethical and political aspect of the human condition is authentically accessible only through narrative. In conclusion, it argues that the postmodern moment was a necessary one, or will have been if we rise to the occasion and seize the opportunity it offers: a truly universal humanism might yet be realized even in—or perhaps especially in—this atavistic hour of parochial populism.

Author : Jeff Noonan
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
Page : 247 pages
File Size : 24,94 MB
Release : 2022-08-16
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 1793636958

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There are many answers to the question of why life is worth living, but they all presuppose that good lives are sensuously enjoyable. Time seems to stand still in the moment when we enjoy food and drink, peaceful, laughing relationships with friends, or lay quietly, allowing the beauty of nature and human creations to unfold before us. Embodied Humanism: Toward Solidarity and Sensuous Enjoyment explores ways that enjoyment is also political. The history of political struggle is a history of fighting back against silencing, hunger, and violent domination, but also fighting for social peace, need-satisfaction, voice, and democratic power. Tracing the values of embodied humanism across history and across cultures and identities, the book finds a more comprehensive universal humanist ethic around which old and emerging struggles can be unified. Ultimately, Jeff Noonan argues, these struggles can be directed towards creating institutional structure and individual dispositions that will secure the social conditions in which our capacities for receptive openness and delight are satisfied for each and all.

Author : Jim Herrick
Publisher : Prometheus Books
Page : 123 pages
File Size : 44,59 MB
Release : 2010-04-06
Category : Philosophy
ISBN : 1615920943

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Humanism is a philosophy that emphasizes the value of human life in all its creative potential within a secular context. Humanism is skeptical of religious beliefs and relies on science as the basis for understanding the universe. Although humanism has become most fully developed in the West, its origins lie throughout the world, and this perspective is shared by people from many different cultural, ethnic and racial backgrounds.In this succinct, informative, and enlightening introduction to humanism, Jim Herrick, a leading humanist advocate in Great Britain, provides a very readable account of the guiding principles, history, and practice of humanism in today''s world. Herrick surveys the tradition of humanism as it developed over many centuries, its skepticism toward belief in God and an afterlife, humanist values and arguments for morality outside of a religious framework, its attitude of tolerance toward different lifestyles and belief systems, its endorsement of democratic political principles, its strong ties to science, its evaluation of the arts as an exploration of human potential, and its concern for environmental preservation and the long-term sustainability of the earth.In conclusion, Herrick briefly describes the various humanist organizations throughout the world; particular causes championed by humanists (women''s rights, racial and sexual equality, freedom of speech and information, and education, among others); and the future of humanism.

Author : William V. Spanos
Publisher : SUNY Press
Page : 204 pages
File Size : 49,98 MB
Release : 2017-07-31
Category : Literary Criticism
ISBN : 1438465971

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Assesses the limits and possibilities of humanism for engaging with issues of pressing political and cultural concern. In his book The End of Education: Toward Posthumanism, William V. Spanos critiqued the traditional Western concept of humanism, arguing that its origins are to be found not in ancient Greece’s love of truth and wisdom, but in the Roman imperial era, when those Greek values were adapted in the service of imperialism on a deeply rooted, metaphysical level. Returning to that question of humanism in the context of the United States’ war on terror in the post-9/11 era, Toward a Non-humanist Humanism points out the dehumanizing dynamics of Western modernity in which the rule of law is increasingly made flexible to defend against threats both real and potential. Spanos considers and assesses the work of thinkers such as Giorgio Agamben, Alain Badiou, Judith Butler, Jacques Rancière, and Slavoj Žižek as humanistic reformers and concludes with an effort to imagine a different kind of humanism—a non-humanist humanism—in which the old binary of friend versus foe gives way to a coming community without ethnic, cultural, or sexual divisions.

Author : Harold Chorney
Publisher :
Page : 236 pages
File Size : 26,70 MB
Release : 1992
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN :

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A collection of essays written between the late 70s and the present day that focus attention on the neglected cultural side of society in order to chart the progress of political change. "The themes are relevant for those trying to fathom the post-Reaganite political world of the 1990s."--"Canadian Book Review Annual"

Author : Osborne Bennett Hardison (Jr.)
Publisher : Baltimore : Johns Hopkins Press
Page : 200 pages
File Size : 24,71 MB
Release : 1972
Category : Education
ISBN :

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Originally published in 1973. Toward Freedom and Dignity is a humanist's view of the humanities in an age of burgeoning technology. O. B. Hardison Jr. deals with the status of the humanities and their future—how they are regarded and how they may come to contribute to a genuinely humane society. He argues that humanistic studies are not a luxury in either education or society. They are central to the preparation of human beings for the kind of society that is possible if we manage to avoid an Orwellian technocracy. Social goals and priorities must be set in terms of the ideal of a culture truly adjusted to human needs and human limitations. In framing his argument, Hardison draws on ideas of the humanities since the Renaissance, especially on the philosophical humanities that emerged in Europe in the works of authors like Kant, Schiller, and Coleridge. He is untroubled by anti-humanistic trends in college curricula and the surrounding culture, and he contends that we have only one practical option: to ensure that culture evolves toward a more humane society, toward freedom and dignity.