Between Cultures Tensions in the Struggle for Recognition [Paperback]

Whenever an individual asks to be recognized, he asks for confirmation of what he believes himself to be. But he also asks for an establishing act which brings about what he is not yet and what he will be only once he has been recognized. Recognition is thus marked by a tension between two incompatible demands, a tension which triggers a struggle for recognition.

Between Cultures is a philosophical attempt to discuss issues related to multiculturalism in the light of this struggle for recognition. Moving effortlessly between philosophy, psychoanalysis, sociology, political theory and literature, it refers to the work of Adorno, Derrida, Freud, Hegel, Heidegger, Rawls, Walzer and Wittgenstein to describe a historical and critical politics of recognition. It also addresses questions of national and sexual identities, with particular reference to the notion of a gay identity in the context of Aids.Alexander García Düttmannis Professor of Philosophy and Visual Culture at Goldsmiths, University of London. His books includeThe Gift of Language,The Memory of Thought: An Essay on Heidegger and Adorno,At Odds with Aids, andBetween Cultures: Tensions in the Struggle for Recognition.

Ernesto Laclauis Professor of Political Theory in the Department of Government, University of Essex, and Distinguished Professor for Humanities and Rhetorical Studies at Northwestern University. He is the author of, amongst other works,Hegemony and Socialist Strategy(with Chantal Mouffe),New Reflections of the Revolution of Our Time,The Populist Reason,Contingency, Hegemony, Universality(with Judith Butler and Slavoj Zizek), andEmancipation(s).

Chantal Mouffeis a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Democracy at the University of Westminster. Her books includeThe Return of the Political;Hegemony and Socialist Strategy(with Ernesto Laclau);l4