‘A brutal blow against the democratic normality’: unlearning the epistemology of the political

ABSTRACT

The objective of this paper is to rethink our understanding of ‘the political’ through an examination of two novels by José Saramago, Blindness and Seeing. Both novels tackle directly a central, if not the central, signature metaphor of Western political thought, namely that of ‘seeing the light’. This metaphor takes many forms and recurs throughout the tradition of Western political philosophy as a source, legitimiser, and validator of knowing, and perhaps even a guarantor of knowledge. In particular, this metaphor has served to make knowable whatever it is that is signified by ‘the political’. By extension, it also means that whatever might be outside of this epistemological frame is rendered unknowable, if not unthinkable. Both of Saramago’s novels provide a fruitful means to recalibrate how we might know ‘the political’. The novels call into question the epistemic signatures that frame our commonly accepted understandings of ‘the political’ and in so doing provoke us further to question how we might move towards unlearning the epistemology of the political.     

Rating the revolution: Silicon Valley in normative perspective

Silicon Valley, California – home of Apple, Facebook, Twitter, Google, and so on – is widely regarded as the epicentre of the information revolution. However, it is not just a technical or economic phenomenon; it has also made a social revolution. The article evaluates Silicon Valley from a normative perspective, seeking to identify its real societal impact, negative as well as positive. A select review of significant literature is followed by exposition of primary data, based on in situ face-to-face interviews with Valley occupants; these range from the chief technology officer of a global brand to a homeless, unemployed Vietnam War veteran. The article organises its findings under three headings: the nature of information revolution; iCapitalism as a new technoeconomic synthesis; and the normative crisis of the information society. It concludes with a warning about ongoing attempts to clone Silicon Valley around the world.     

Blogging while Black,British and female: a critical study on discursive activism

This study explores Black British women's motivations for divulging racial and ethnic identity in the blogosphere (sometimes referred to as blogging while Black) and their use of blogs for discursive activism. It builds on previous research that gives voice to Black womens marginalized experiences through powerful counter narratives. The blogosphere is often perceived as a racially neutral space where shared interests across geographical and temporal boundaries limit the significance of racial and ethnic identity. However, the constructed narratives of Black British women in this study highlight their experiences of subtle forms of prejudice and discrimination perpetuated through dominant discourses in the mainstream media. The findings demonstrate how they use blogs as a medium for discursive activism to challenge stereotypical raced and gendered representation in the mainstream media. Much of the research on the blogosphere in Britain reflects its use by the White majority population. This study therefore extends understanding of the blogosphere and highlights alternative modes of political communication.     

When political candidates “go positive”: the effects of flattering the rival in political communication

In the field of political communication, the effects of negative propaganda strategies have been long studied. In the current work, I investigated the perceived and actual persuasiveness of an unexplored positive propaganda strategy, i.e., addressing a flattery to the rival in a political speech. In a 2 × 2 full-factorial design experiment, a fictitious candidate (a man or a woman) flattered, or did not flatter, an opponent in a political speech. Results showed that when the candidate flattered a rival s/he influenced the likelihood of being voted through source trustworthiness evaluation, irrespective of the candidate’s gender. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

The Embedding of Russian State-Sanctioned Multipolarity in the Post-Soviet Conjuncture

This article demonstrates the manner in which key Russian officials engaged with and propagated the notion of multipolarity in the wider post-Soviet conjuncture—first in the 1990s and intensively during Vladimir Putin's first two presidencies. I argue that this demonstrates an earlier disarticulation of neoliberalism, globalisation, unipolarity, and hegemony than that offered in the nascent ‘multipolar turn’ in the sub-disciplines of International Political Economy and International Relations. Embedding understandings of multipolarity that cohere to state strategy, key Russian officials invite us to efface the divide between academic and political practice when understanding how world order concepts are propagated and normalised. A multifaceted treatment of multipolarity does not render it analytically dubious; rather, it cements its importance as a common sense and ‘polysemic’ understanding of global political affairs serving an explicit political function.     

思想政治教育经济价值新探

思想政治教育经济价值,是指思想政治教育劳动所创造的能促进社会经济增长和发展,满足人们物质和精神需要的效应。思想政治教育在具有一般事物所拥有的性质和特点的同时,还具有其自身特有的属性及表现形态。思想政治教育经济价值具有依存性、间接性、多端性和两面性的基本特点。思想政治教育有助于及时更新经济发展理念,科学选择评价经济活动的标准,优化经济活动结构。     

浅谈在高校思想政治教育中构建和谐德育

在高校思想政治教育中构建和谐德育,具有促进学生健康成长、增强思想政治教育实效性等重要意义。高校和谐德育构建过程中存在教育者与被教育者不够和谐、德育方式与作用对象不够和谐、德育内容与社会要求不够和谐、德育力量之间不够和谐等问题。构建高校和谐德育应树立＂以学生为本＂的德育理念,丰富德育的方式方法和手段,增强德育内容的时代性和现实感,创设良好的和谐德育环境。     

大学生非正式群体行为特征对思想政治教育工作的影响研究

文章就大学生非正式群体开展思想政治教育工作提出建议。     

《寻隐者不遇》的叙事翻译补偿

以《寻隐者不遇》为例,从叙事视角、叙事方式、叙事结构、叙事策略和叙事意象等方面来考查原文的叙事要素和叙事特征,在对比WitterBynner,BurtonWatson,吴钧陶,王大濂,孙大雨,万昌盛、王倘中,许渊冲等译者的七个英译文本叙事翻译质量的基础上,进行叙事翻译补偿。     

现代政治文化与民族国家治理

现代政治文化具有世俗性、自主性、开放性与融合性。民族国家治理是国家公共权力控制和引导政治、社会活动的运作行为。政治文化现代化与民族国家治理之间存在互动关系。现代政治文化对民族国家治理提供支撑与协调,民族国家的治理活动推动、引导政治文化现代化的发展。