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Liberalism, Communitarianism, and the Search for Utopia

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Liberalism, Communitarianism, and the Search for Utopia University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Masters Theses Graduate School 8-2006 Liberalism, Communitarianism, and the Search for Utopia Jennifer Marie Vanden Heuval University of Tennessee, Knoxville Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes Part of the English Language and Literature Commons Recommended Citation Vanden Heuval, Jennifer Marie, "Liberalism, Communitarianism, and the Search for Utopia. " Master's Thesis, University of Tennessee, 2006. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_gradthes/4503 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Masters Theses by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Jennifer Marie Vanden Heuval entitled "Liberalism, Communitarianism, and the Search for Utopia." I have examined the final electronic copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, with a major in English. Allen Dunn, Major Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: Heather Hirschfeld, Alisa Schoenbach Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official studentecor r ds.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a thesis written by Jennifer Marie Vanden Heuvel entitled "Liberalism, Communitarianism, and the Search for Utopia." I have examined the final paper copy of this thesis for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts with a major in English. Alle�or Professor We have read this thesis and recommend its acceptance: l&kir� Alisa Schoenbach Vice Chanc�a Dean of Graduate Studies LIBERALISM, COMMUNITARIANISM, AND THE SEARCH FOR UTOPIA A Thesis Presented for the Master of Arts Degree The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Jennifer Marie Vanden Heuvel August 2006 Abstract This thesis traces the development of utopian literature through the lens of the liberal-communitarian debate. As Jurgen Habermas asserts, utopian thought plays a vital role in the positive development of society. Habermas also observes that utopian energies are failing in modern society and that this limits our ability to achieve an affirmative community. I agree with Habermas's assessment and therefore here I examine literary representations of utopia with the hope that utopian energies can be revived. As I argue here, literary utopias can inspire and guide us towards positive societal change. In chapter one, I examine the utopias of the early modern period, focusing specifically on Thomas More's Utopia. Here I reveal that More's special insight is the concept of artificial scarcity which he believes forces men to accept inequitable social structures. These structures, in turn, prevent humanity from reaching its full potential. Therefore, better institutions will improve humanity. In the following chapter, I investigate Karl Marx's Manifesto of the Communist Party as well as his earlier philosophies as they appear in The Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844 and the German Ideology. Here I look at the way Marx's theory that humanity's consciousness is determined by his material existence affects his vision of utopia. From this we learn that humanity cannot be separated from social institutions. Finally, in chapter three, I explore the arguably iii dystopian Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. Here I claim that the novel is in fact, in Rand's conception, a capitalist utopia. In the world of this novel, the individual is valued above all else which leads to the destruction of community. Rand, however, argues that the partial destruction of society is necessary in order for the elite to form a true collectivity. Although I cover a wide range of texts covered in this study, through it we see that the search for utopia is actually a search for true collectivity. I argue that although past attempts to reach this collectivity have failed, Habermas's theory of communicative action is inclusive enough to account for the diversity of modernity. iv Table of Contents Introduction 1 Chapter One: The Utopian Visions of the Early Modern Period 15 Chapter Two: The Move Toward Secularism in Utopian Thought 39 Chapter Three: Moving from "We" to "I" and Losing Utopia? 57 Conclusion: The Importance of Utopian Thought 77 List of References 83 Vita 89 V Introduction The present state of the communitarian-liberal debate In a town meeting in Chester, Pennsylvania, Senator Rick Santorum presented President Bush's plan to overhaul Social Security, focusing heavily on the benefits of private accounts (Toner). Although Mr. Santorum held the meeting to talk to younger generations about the proposed change, his audience ranged from college students to retirees (Toner). While Mr. Santorum's speech was focused on the benefits of privatization, the New York Times reported a mixed reaction from the audience. Many of the older members of the community attended the meeting to protest the proposed changes, and Mr. Santorum did little to change their minds. Martin Berger, president of a retirees union, voiced one of the group's dominant concerns: "We built the system. We believe that it should be available for our children and grandchildren" (Toner). However, a few of the younger members of the audience disagreed with this intergenerational, family and community focused perspective and voiced support for the plan of privatization. Student Katherine Dombrowski strongly supported the idea of privatization and described resistance to the privatization as a refusal to accept self-responsibility. "I don't understand what everybody has against the idea of taking care of yourselves, " she said (Toner). Although this debate centered on the issue of Social Security, the comments of these two audience members are part of a much 1 broader socio-political debate between the two dominant currents of American social theory: communitarianism and liberalism (Delanty 43). Communitarianism argues that humans are social by nature and emphasizes that the good of the community is in the best interests of the individual. Berger, with his focus on the necessity of the community in the life of the individual, is representative of the communitarian perspective. Conversely, liberalism prizes the rights of the individual and therefore asserts that social institutions should not interfere with the freedom of the individual. The liberal perspective is represented by Dombrowski because she believes that the individual should be free from any community or government­ imposed restraints. In my discussion of the Social Security debate, I presented Berger and Dombrowski as clear-cut examples of a communitarian and a liberal. These two perspectives can be seen as endpoints on a continuum. On the far left, the communitarians argue that the individual can only reach self-actualization as a member of a community; therefore, the rights of the individual should always be subordinate to the good of the community. On the far right, the neo-liberals argue that the individual should be free from any restraints, community-based or otherwise. Again, in both cases, the most extreme proponents believe that a full implementation of their ideals will lead to the best possible version of Social Security, specifically, and society in general. 2 Most people, however, are not extremists or utopians but espouse a hybrid of the two perspectives or fall somewhere closer to the middle of the spectrum. Indeed, the conununitarian and liberal discourses mix promiscuously in current thought, as well as in past debates, and the difference between those on the right and those on the left is often a mere matter of degrees. In this shadowy debate, recognizing the emphasis of each rhetoric is imperative because the conununitarian and liberal perspectives lead us in radically different political directions and to radically different versions of the ideal society. A persistent tension exists between these two perspectives, and much of utopian literature seeks to resolve this tension. Although utopian texts may favor either liberalism or conununitarianism, all utopian texts, by definition, seek to find the ideal balance between the interests of the individual and the interests of the conununity. The most optimistic of these texts assert that these interests are in perfect harmony with each other. In order to understand the positions within the current utopian debate, I will examine the literary history of utopianism within the context of the evolution of social theory. In "The Crisis of the Welfare State and the Exhaustion of Utopian Energies, " Jurgen Habermas claims humanity is losing its willingness and ability to imagine utopia. At present, many consider the discourse of utopia to be irrelevant because of its 3 idealism; however, I expound upon Habermas's argument that the discourse of utopia is relevant because of that very idealism. I believe that the hopefulness expressed in utopian literature can serve as a guide and a motivator for positive change. More specifically, in this project, I assert that narratives of community and utopia, though no longer ascendant, can still guide humanity in its search for
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