An Introduction to Egalitarian Thought and Dynamics

Abstract

In this introduction we approach egalitarianism as an upset-ting force that in various ways has shaped much of modern, especially Western, human history. We outline philosophical trajectories from the Enlightenment onward; consider the historical realization of an agency of ‘the people’ for the articulation of state, society, and politics; and high-light some issues that arise when the claims to freedom and equality clash against established institutions and values. Stressing the dynamic inter-twining of the egalitarian with the hierarchical, we portray egalitarian life forms as modes of relationality that negate, subvert, or take advantage of open potentials in existing systems. Egalitarian life strives toward recon-figuring social orders through rupturing moments of effervescence and liminality while attempting to redefine central categories of life.