Book Reviews by Mladjo Ivanovic
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Papers by Mladjo Ivanovic
Journal of Global Ethics, 2019
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Childhoods in More Just Worlds: An International Handbook, 2021
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
The Rest Writes Back: Discourse and Decolonization, 2019
The main goal of this chapter is to interrogate current material and epistemological practices ai... more The main goal of this chapter is to interrogate current material and epistemological practices aimed at governance of the most vulnerable layers of humanity. By reflecting on the struggles of forcefully displaced people and the challenges of Western humanitarianism (and contemporary humanitarian agency of Western (privileged) spectators in general), I hope to show that we are confronted with social processes and subjectivity which foster inadequate goals in regard to solidarity with distant others. In order to achieve this, my analysis is divided into three main parts. The first identifies some of the weaknesses of humanitarian discourse and practices, and it has an analytical dimension in that it attempts to tease out the epistemic forces, cultural habits, forms of knowledge, skills and expertise that were folded into the ontological organization and form of subjectivity that is at the center of humanitarian attention and “solidarity.” The second part focuses on material and epistemological legacy of colonialism manifested in practices and ideological tendencies of Eurocentric humanitarianism. Taking into account that encounters between Western humanitarian agent and Non-Western other takes place amidst values and receptivity of hegemonic culture, humanitarian narratives - based on discriminatory racial, gender, cultural, and economic geographies - exemplify the distorted perspectives on humanitarian victims’ structural and symbolic disadvantages. Finally, I conclude by hinting at an alternative way of thinking about responsibility and solidarity. I hope that by bringing inconsistencies of humanitarianism into the spotlight I show how humanitarianism has become an echo of colonial mechanisms that inextricably serve both to define and to justify certain discourses and practices that ultimately govern human beings. By disclosing pathologies internal to humanitarianism, my work at the same time calls attention to practices that an alternative, counter-hegemonic humanitarianism needs to avoid.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Ethics and Economics, 2019
This paper explores the current standing of humanitarian ethics from two different, and yet inter... more This paper explores the current standing of humanitarian ethics from two different, and yet interrelated perspectives. The first argues that shortcomings of humanitarianism are symptoms of deeper social and political problems inextricably linked to the nature of humanitarian practices, while the second takes notion of humanitarian compassion as the primary moral (and political) disposition of the 21 st century individual under critical scrutiny. By bringing inconsistencies of humanitarianism into the spotlight I show how humanitarianism has become a language that inextricably serves to govern human beings. Hence, by disclosing pathologies internal to the humanitarian system, I hope that I am at the same time pointing at things that a reimagined humanitarianism needs to avoid. Ultimately, I argue that this is only possible if we rethink the objectives and nature of humanitarian assistance today. Instead of falling prey to unhealthy dependencies of crisis relief and pathologies that it engenders, humanitarianism should focus on restoring the autonomy of those affected by humanitarian crises and foster further development of their social environment and individual capabilities. A satisfactory humanitarian regime should enable people to help themselves and their communities, particularly through improving their sustainability and resilience in the face of increasing global challenges and vulnerabilities. RESUME Cet article explore le statut actuel de l'éthique humanitaire sous deux perspectives différentes et pourtant interdépendantes. La première affirme que les faiblesses de l'humanisme sont le symptôme de problèmes sociaux et politiques plus profonds inextricablement liés à la nature des pratiques humanitaires, tandis que la seconde prend la notion de compassion humanitaire comme la principale disposition morale (et politique) de l'individu du XXIe siècle et la soumet à un examen critique. En mettant en lumière les incohérences de l'humanitaire, je montre comment l'humanitaire est devenu un langage qui sert inextricablement à gouverner les êtres humains. Par conséquent, en dévoilant des pathologies internes au système humanitaire, j'espère que je pointe en même temps les éléments à éviter pour un humanisme réimaginé. En fin de compte, je soutiens que cela n'est possible que si nous repensons les objectifs et la nature de l'aide humanitaire aujourd'hui. Au lieu de devenir la proie de dépendances malsaines des secours en cas de crise et de pathologies qu'ils engendrent, l'action humanitaire devrait viser à restaurer l'autonomie des personnes touchées par les crises humanitaires et favoriser le développement de leur environnement social et de leurs capacités individuelles. Un régime humanitaire satisfaisant devrait permettre aux populations de s'aider et d'aider leurs communautés, notamment en améliorant leur durabilité et leur résilience face aux défis et aux vulnérabilités mondiales croissantes.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
This paper tackles an old, yet persisting philosophical and cultural imaginary that justifies the... more This paper tackles an old, yet persisting philosophical and cultural imaginary that justifies the political subjugation, marginalization and exclusion of distant others through claims that such people are less advanced and cognitively inferior, and therefore remain at the periphery of moral and political considerations of Western political culture. My premise here is that all knowledge is historically conditioned, and as such serves as a discursive formation that mirrors and sustains specific historical forms of social organization and practices. Thus, by considering the interrelated themes of epistemic and social inclusion (and exclusion) of refugees and migrants from a range of critical philosophical perspectives, I argue that successfully managing the dire humanitarian circumstances involved in admitting and receiving displaced and migrant people requires the inclusion of both the bodies of knowledge and discursive interactions and also diverse social and cultural perspectives. Questions of inclusion, so conceived, cannot be addressed without acknowledging justice as an inseparable mix of social and epistemic interactions. Taking into account that cultural, racial and/or gender insensitivities result from a lack of knowledge of social realities as much as a lack of self-knowledge (i.e., knowledge of one's position with respect to the relevant categories and the relevant forms of oppression) it seems necessary to broaden social methods of inclusiveness to include this epistemic component and analyze epistemic deficiencies in social interaction.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Taking my point of departure in the urgent social challenges tied with current failures of humani... more Taking my point of departure in the urgent social challenges tied with current failures of humanitarian management and inclusion of Non-Western others in “developed” Western societies, this paper explores the ways in which representation and knowledge about human suffering guides our (un)willingness to act ethically with respect to vulnerable strangers and the difficult conditions they endure. After drawing attention to gaps between our emotional dispositions and concrete political engagement (gaps that are neither harmless or innocent), this paper proposes a transformationalist interpretation of Theodor Adorno’s critique of cognitive and material dispositions that result in reductive habits of cognition and atrophied moral agency. While my reading of Adorno finds his work partially open to the possibility of ethics beyond the common liberal understanding, what I find ultimately helpful in addressing today’s issues of moral and political subjectivity is the guiding thread of his work that shows how epistemology ought to be ethical, and that ethics should in turn be political. Adorno’s insistence on the primacy of the object of our knowledge invites us to think morally and see the priority of the Other as a crucial feature of any ethical relationship.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
This paper explores the historical conditions under which the object of humanitarian discourse is... more This paper explores the historical conditions under which the object of humanitarian discourse is conceived and organized. What is problematic about this discourse is not only the alarming reality of humanitarianism's intertwinement with militarism and political power, but also the calculated arbitrariness of redress that brings into question which norms guide public articulations of victims' suffering. By questioning how a specific understanding of the other is formed, this paper aims to draw attention to the inconsistencies associated with the problematic relation between witnessing atrocities and the moral responses that this should entail.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Beck, D., Ivanovic, M., Noll, S., and Werkheiser, I. (2013). “The Ethics of Consuming: Community,... more Beck, D., Ivanovic, M., Noll, S., and Werkheiser, I. (2013). “The Ethics of Consuming: Community, Agency, and Participation in Global Food Systems.” In Helena Rocklinsberg and Per Sandin (Eds), The Ethics of Consumption: The Citizen, The Market, and The Law (p.437-451). Netherlands: Wageningen Academic Publishers
Abstract
It is easy enough to think about preparing food, growing food, and eating food as straight-forward affairs, or mere biological necessities. However, these processes are wrapped up in social relations, personal identities, and political power. Broadly critical frameworks can help pull apart the varying dimensions in this complex and dynamic relationship in order to provide guidance for reforming our relationship to the food we consume in a more democratic and participatory direction. To that end, we explore the normative implications of the current organization of the world food system from multiple perspectives in critical theory, the philosophy of science, and political philosophy. We offer ethical and political analyses at the levels of community activism, national food policy, and global consumerist capitalism to show how an approach that sees these multiple levels as interactive can provide concrete reasons for supporting certain effective solutions.
Bookmarks Related papers MentionsView impact
Uploads
Book Reviews by Mladjo Ivanovic
Papers by Mladjo Ivanovic
Abstract
It is easy enough to think about preparing food, growing food, and eating food as straight-forward affairs, or mere biological necessities. However, these processes are wrapped up in social relations, personal identities, and political power. Broadly critical frameworks can help pull apart the varying dimensions in this complex and dynamic relationship in order to provide guidance for reforming our relationship to the food we consume in a more democratic and participatory direction. To that end, we explore the normative implications of the current organization of the world food system from multiple perspectives in critical theory, the philosophy of science, and political philosophy. We offer ethical and political analyses at the levels of community activism, national food policy, and global consumerist capitalism to show how an approach that sees these multiple levels as interactive can provide concrete reasons for supporting certain effective solutions.
Abstract
It is easy enough to think about preparing food, growing food, and eating food as straight-forward affairs, or mere biological necessities. However, these processes are wrapped up in social relations, personal identities, and political power. Broadly critical frameworks can help pull apart the varying dimensions in this complex and dynamic relationship in order to provide guidance for reforming our relationship to the food we consume in a more democratic and participatory direction. To that end, we explore the normative implications of the current organization of the world food system from multiple perspectives in critical theory, the philosophy of science, and political philosophy. We offer ethical and political analyses at the levels of community activism, national food policy, and global consumerist capitalism to show how an approach that sees these multiple levels as interactive can provide concrete reasons for supporting certain effective solutions.