Books & ideas

Civic Mobilization in Russia: Protest and Daily Life

2013-06-14T08:43:34Z

Has Russia, amidst rising social discontent and pervasive economic crisis, rediscovered collective mobilization? In this essay, Carine Clément emphasizes the potential for self-organization evident in mobilization “from below,” which is rapidly expanding in daily life.

- Essays / rebellion, citizenship, mobilization, social movements

With or Without the Chinese People?

2013-04-08T09:52:30Z

How do Chinese intellectuals construe social instability? This essay maps out the debate on democracy in early 21st century China and explains how, despite diverse viewpoints, widespread elitist views describe common citizens as obstacles to rapid democratization.

- Essays / democracy, the elite, people

Protesting in early 21st century China

2013-03-07T08:34:27Z

In order to better grasp protests and social movements in China, whose number has impressively swollen in recent years, Books&Ideas presents a dossier on the evolution of social mobilization and on the representation of social instability in this country.

- Dossiers / political representation, social movements, new technologies, social rights

Plutocracy in America

2013-02-25T08:48:08Z

Is American democracy controlled by a rich minority of plutocrats? Has it drowned in money in the past thirty years? Studying the behavior of rich Americans in politics, three recent books answer these questions and prove that, yes, plutocracy has become a real threat in America.

- Reviews / power, domination, ruling class

Claiming Indigenousness in India

2013-02-07T08:00:00Z

India has created a National Commission for the Scheduled Tribes, the name given to its indigenous populations. Have the Adivasi, the other name for the Scheduled Tribes, really benefited from the Commission's policies? There, as in many other issues in India, the problem lies in local politics.

- Essays / minority, positive discrimination, indigenous peoples

The Politics of Disagreement

2012-12-03T08:00:00Z

How comprehensive can a history of modern French political thought claim to be? Jeremy Jennings has undertaken to capture the complexity of modern French politics in ten thematic chapters.

- Reviews / republic, French Revolution

Mapping the Chinese NGO Sector

2012-11-19T19:25:57Z

Mainland China has been experiencing a striking upsurge of non-governmental associational activities in the past thirty years, especially since the mid-1990s. However, because of the high diversity and ambivalence among these new so-called NGOs, it is hard to introduce a western theoretical approach, such as civil society or corporatism to justify the nature of this emerging sector. This paper aims to map out a more mixed and pluralistic picture of the Chinese NGOs than is traditionally described.

- Essays / government

Homophobia in the United States

2012-11-05T11:59:47Z

What links the American conservative Christian movement to homophobia? Anchoring his analysis in the texts published by the Christian organization Focus on the Family, Ludger H. Viefhues-Bailey explores the discourse of contemporary Christian conservatism, distinguishing between political agenda and religious doctrine.

- Reviews / conservatism, homosexuality

The Limits of Presidential Power

2012-11-02T07:27:53Z

When Barack Obama was inaugurated in January 2009, most Americans saw him as a president committed to bringing significant change. But his progressive ambitions soon ran up against indifference and even hostility in the electorate and in some of the political class. How could such an intelligent president find it so hard to get his message across?

- Reviews / elections, Barack Obama

The Making of the Republican Candidate

2012-10-30T06:40:46Z

For the Republicans, the 2012 presidential primary race was expected to lay bare the fabric of the Republican party. How to deal with the surge of the Tea Party and the voter realignment apparent since December 2010? Ideological shifts have played a part in these changes, as well as the rules of this very complex game: the American presidential primary.

- Essays / elections