Riddle of Human Rights - Couverture souple

Teeple, Gary

Couverture souple

ISBN 10 : 0850365554 ISBN 13 : 9780850365559

Editeur : The Merlin Press Ltd, 2004

Synopsis

What are human rights? Are human rights disputed ideological concepts? and how can they be defended, and extended? Wolf-Dieter Narr of the Free University of Berlin writes that through this book "one is able to recognize the fundamental ambivalence which characterises all the 'theories' on and the practices of human rights in the West." It, "makes the reader aware of human longings and needs which are the other part of human rights." This book challenges the concept of human rights, it shows that the contradictions that characterize human rights reflect the conflicts inherent in capitalist society, lead to the pervasive violation of those rights, and make respect for them impossible, particularly in this era of global capitalism. The author argues that human rights as spelled out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights are not 'human' rights - but rather time-bound and relative to a particular mode of production.

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur

In The Riddle of Human Rights Gary Teeple makes the case that human rights are peculiar to a historically given mode of production; in other words, they comprise a public declaration of the principles of the prevailing property relations in a given time and place. Although human rights are proclaimed as absolute and universal, the reality is that nowhere in the world are they upheld as either absolute or universal—the ability to exercise the rights spelled out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is everywhere circumscribed and relative to the imperatives of the powers that be.

Teeple also explores the effects of globalization on the current and future exercise of human rights. He argues that the entire range of civil, political, and social rights is becoming subordinate to global corporate interests. In the wake of September 11, 2001, Teeple suggests that the threat of terrorism serves as an excuse for the arbitrary abrogation of established rights and the violation of international law to further the demands of global capital.

Revue de presse

Teeple's work forces us to consider the ramifications of a narrow, legal conception of human rights in a world where the division between the state and civil society is becoming increasingly blurred. It is an innovative argument and an essential contribution to a literature blind to the limitations of this elusive concept. --Labour / Le Travail

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: The Merlin Press Ltd
• Date d'édition: 2004
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0850365554
• ISBN 13: 9780850365559
• Reliure: Broché
• Nombre de pages: 286
• Coordonnées du fabricant: non disponible
• Personne responsable: non disponible