Moral Conflict and Politics

This is a collection of essays examining value pluralism and moral conflict and their implications for political thinking and practice. In Parts 1 and 2 the author discusses them directly and their consequences for how we are to think about equality, liberty, power and authority. In Parts 2 and 3 he focuses on the non-obvious role of morality in Marxist theory and practice, and in Part 4 he examines the contributions of contemporary political thinkers including Vaclav Havel. In the final part he puts theory to the test, looking at important political issues and showing how political moralities influence the world we live in.Table of ContentPart 1 Making sense of moral conflict: taking morality seriously; incommensurability in science and ethics; equality and liberty - must they conflict?; the uses of ethnocentricity. Part 2 Power and authority: perspectives on authority. Part 3 Can the base be distinguished from the superstructure?: can a Marxist believe in human rights?; Marxism and dirty hands. Part 4 Of gods and demons: Habermas and practical reason; C.B. Macpherson and the real and ideal worlds of democracy; Alasdair MacIntyre, in a new dark age - the way out, or back?; Vaclav Havel on "The Power of the Powerless"; Vaclav Havel- the meaning of life on the ramparts. Part 5 The future of British socialism?: the morality of sanctions; the principles of 1989 - reflections on the political morality of the recent revolutions.