Carole Pateman Ordre des livres (chronologique)

Carole Pateman is one of the leading political theorists writing today. This wide-ranging volume brings together for the first time a selection of her work on democratic theory and feminist criticism of mainstream political theory. The volume includes substantial discussions of problems of democracy, citizenship and the welfare state, including the largely unrecognized difficulties surrounding women's participation. The inclusion of essays from both a mainstream and feminist perspective provides concrete examples of the differences between these two approaches to democracy, to questions of consent and political obligation, and to the relationship between the private and public spheres. This scholarly and highly challenging work will be of interest to students and researchers in political theory, political science, women's studies and sociology.

In this original work of political philosophy, a leading feminist theorist challenges contemporary societal norms by questioning the traditional interpretation of the social contract as articulated by Locke, Hobbes, and Rousseau, and later by the Founding Fathers in the U.S. The author reveals that the narrative of the original contract, which underpins modern patriarchy, is incomplete. The sexual contract is often overlooked, leading to a disregard for men's patriarchal rights over women. The exclusion of women from the original contract raises significant issues when they are later included in the new contractual order. A key focus is on those who attempt to adapt contractarian theory for progressive purposes, arguing that this is fundamentally flawed. Feminists seeking a more equitable contract between equal partners or without coercion are misled, as the author asserts that "universal freedom is always a hypothesis, a story, a political fiction." The book also critiques mainstream political theorists and critics of contract theory. By examining contracts in everyday life—such as marriage, employment, prostitution, and surrogacy—the author employs a feminist lens to illuminate the contradictions surrounding women and contracts, ultimately addressing deeper political issues of freedom and subordination.

It is usually taken for granted that, in liberal democracies, a bond of political 'obligation' exists between citizens and the state. The substantive, and controversial, argument of this book is that political obligation constitutes an insoluble problem in the liberal democratic state. It is argued that the problem can be solved only within the context of a participatory democratic system. In reaching this conclusion Carole Pateman offers a general assessment of liberal theory and an interpretation of all the familiar arguments about political obligation and democratic consent. Current controversies about 'democracy' and political obligation are fully discussed in the light of both philosophical debate and empirical evidence from research in the social sciences." The Problem of Political Obligation" was first published in 1979. This new edition retains the original text but includes a substantial new chapter which clarifies further the central themes of the work.

Shows that current elitist theories are based on an inadequate understanding of the early writings of democratic theory and that much sociological evidence has been ignored.