Educating We the People: Jean-Luc Nancy and the Spirit of 1968

Abstract

This essay by René Arcilla examines Jean-Luc Nancy's understanding of the “spirit of 1968.” It argues that Nancy's concept can guide a humanist approach to educating citizens for participation in democratic self-government, one that responds to the political challenges facing us today. In particular, it develops a critique of factionalizing identity politics and seeks to renew what it means to address, and be addressed by, “we the people.” The essay proposes an idea of what democracy seeks to affirm: our social being.