Clash Within: Democracy, Religious Violence, and India's Future Contributor(s): Nussbaum, Martha C. (Author) |
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ISBN: 0674030591 ISBN-13: 9780674030596 Publisher: Belknap Press OUR PRICE: $30.40 Product Type: Paperback - Other Formats Published: October 2008 Annotation: In this cautionary work, Nussbaum maintains that while America is focused on religious militancy and terrorism in the Middle East, democracy has been under siege from religious extremism in another critical part of the world: India. |
Additional Information |
BISAC Categories: - Political Science | World - General - Religion | Religion, Politics & State - Social Science | Violence In Society |
Dewey: 320.540 |
Physical Information: 1.18" H x 6.14" W x 9.18" (1.43 lbs) 432 pages |
Themes: - Cultural Region - Indian - Religious Orientation - Hindu |
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
Publisher Description: While America is focused on religious militancy and terrorism in the Middle East, democracy has been under siege from religious extremism in another critical part of the world. As Martha Nussbaum reveals in this penetrating look at India today, the forces of the Hindu right pose a disturbing threat to its democratic traditions and secular state. Since long before the 2002 Gujarat riots--in which nearly two thousand Muslims were killed by Hindu extremists--the power of the Hindu right has been growing, threatening India's hard-won constitutional practices of democracy, tolerance, and religious pluralism. Led politically by the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Hindu right has sought the subordination of other religious groups and has directed particular vitriol against Muslims, who are cast as devils in need of purging. The Hindu right seeks to return to a pure India, unsullied by alien polluters of other faiths, yet the BJP's defeat in recent elections demonstrates the power that India's pluralism continues to wield. The future, however, is far from secure, and Hindu extremism and exclusivity remain a troubling obstacle to harmony in South Asia. Nussbaum's long-standing professional relationship with India makes her an excellent guide to its recent history. Ultimately she argues that the greatest threat comes not from a clash between civilizations, as some believe, but from a clash within each of us, as we oscillate between self-protective aggression and the ability to live in the world with others. India's story is a cautionary political tale for all democratic states striving to act responsibly in an increasingly dangerous world. |
Contributor Bio(s): Nussbaum, Martha C.: - Martha C. Nussbaum is Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor at the University of Chicago, appointed in the Law School and the Philosophy Department. Among her many awards are the 2017 Berggruen Prize, the 2018 Don M. Randel Award for Humanistic Studies from the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and the 2016 Kyoto Prize in Arts and Philosophy. |