Dialogues with Contemporary Political Theorists

BENJAMIN R BARBER Walt Whitman Professor of Political Science Emeritus, Rutgers University, USA JANE BENNETT Professor of Political Science, Johns Hopkins University, USA GARY BROWNING Professor of Politics, Oxford Brookes University, UK DIPESH CHAKRABARTY Lawrence A. Kimpton Distinguished Service Professor, Department of History and Department of South Asian Languages and Civilizations, Chicago University, USA G.A. ('Jerry') COHEN (1941-2009) was Chichele Professor of Social and Political Theory, All Souls' College, Oxford, UK WILLIAM CONNOLLY Krieger-Eisenhower Professor, Johns Hopkins University, USA MARIA DIMOVA-COOKSON Lecturer in Politics, Durham University, UK FONNA FORMAN-BARZILAI Associate Professor of Political Science and founding Co-Director of the Center on Global Justice, University of California, San Diego, USA RAINER FORST Professor of Political Theory and Philosophy, Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main, Germany XAVIER GUILLAUME Lecturer in International Relations, University of Geneva, Switzerland BONNIE HONIG Sarah Rebecca Roland Professor of Political Science, Northwestern University, USA GULSHAN ARA KHAN Lecturer in Political Theory, School of Politics and International Relations, the University of Nottingham, UK STEVE ON Assistant Professor of Political Science, National Sun Yat-sen University (NSYSU), Kaohsiung, Taiwan CAROLE PATEMAN Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Department of Political Science, University of California, Los Angeles, USA and Honorary Professor, School of European Studies, Cardiff University, UK. PHILIP PETTIT Laurance S. Rockefeller University Professor of Politics and Human Values at Princeton University, USA RAIA PROKHOVNIK Reader in Politics, Open University, UK MICHAEL SAWARD Professor of Politics, Open University, UK AMARTYA SEN Lamont University Professor at Harvard University, USA QUENTIN SKINNER Barber Beaumont Professor of the Humanities, Queen Mary College, University of London, UK SIMON TORMEY Professorof Politics, University of Sydney, Australia R B J WALKER Founding Member of the Graduate Program in Cultural, Political and Social Thought, University of Victoria, Canada MARK ANTHONY WENMAN Lecturer in Politics at the University of Nottingham, UK.

'This volume of dialogues presents an absorbing portrait of the current state of the discipline of political theory. The editors are to be congratulated for their innovative commitment to a more comprehensive grasp of the discipline as it really functions.' - Emeritus Professor Andrew Vincent, Cardiff and Sheffield Universities, UK 'It is really rare to gain a glimpse of how political theorists reflect upon their own work. Featuring conversations with some of the most prominent contemporary theorists carried out by distinguished theorists in their own right, this book presents most valuable insights for both beginners and advanced readers - a remarkable accomplishment.' - Engin Isin, Professor of Politics, The Open University, UK 'These are engaging dialogues, informative for students seeking an introduction to ideas, and illuminating for established researchers.' Elizabeth Frazer, Official Fellow and Tutor in Politics, Tutor for Admissions, New College, Oxford

• Introduction; G.Browning , R.Prokhovnik & M.Dimova-Cookson A Conversation with Benjamin Barber; M.Saward Vital Materiality and Non-Human Agency: An Interview with Jane Bennett; G.Khan Subaltern Studies, Postcolonial Marxism and 'Finding your Place to Begin From': An Interview with Dipesh Chakrabarty; M.Dimova-Cookson An Interview with Jerry Cohen; S.Tormey Pluralism, Capitalism, and the Fragility of Things: An Interview with William Connolly; M.Wenman The Right to Justification: Towards a Critical Theory of Justice and Democracy - An Interview with Rainer Forst; X.Guillaume A Conversation with Bonnie Honig: Exploring Agonistic Humanism; G.Browning A Conversation with Carole Pateman: Reflections on Democratic Participation, The Sexual Contract, and Power Structures; S.On Republicanism, Philosophy of Freedom and the History of Ideas: An Interview with Philip Pettit; M.Dimova-Cookson  Taking a Broader View of Humanity: An Interview with Amartya Sen; F.Forman-Barzilai Approaching PoliticalTheory Historically: An Interview with Quentin Skinner; R.Prokhovnik The Political Theory of Boundaries and the Boundaries of Political Theory: An Interview with R.B.J. Walker; R.Prokhovnik