Abstract
This article focuses on the account of disrespect found in Honneth’s theory of recognition. In it, I am particularly interested in the form of misrecognition or disrespect which is the negation of respect, and which is clearly represented by statelessness. Respect, for Honneth, is closely connected to legal recognition. Guided by Honneth’s view of critical theory as ‘not entirely without a foundation in social reality’, the article puts together an analysis of the political dynamics of his model of disrespect. This analysis is used to challenge certain aspects of Honneth’s political theory and in particular the implications of his conception of the state. The article argues that the way in which the state is used has the effect of obscuring significant political obstacles to recognition, and in particular, the way in which the state limits respect.
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Notes
The criteria for qualification vary within and between states. In most states, qualification is based on either place of birth or parent’s nationality. Most states also reserve the right to naturalise non-citizens, in which case, qualification often implies a literal test.
US Supreme Court. Trop v. Dulles—356 US 86 (1958).
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Acknowledgments
This article was presented in an earlier form at The Politics of Misrecognition conference at the University of Bristol in January 2010, co-organised by Simon Thompson, Wendy Martineau and Nasar Meer. I am very grateful to the organisers, and to all those who participated in the conference. I am also grateful to colleagues at the University of Leicester, to whom an earlier version of this work was also presented in 2010.
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Staples, K. Statelessness and the Politics of Misrecognition. Res Publica 18, 93–106 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11158-012-9188-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11158-012-9188-0