Declaration Of The Rights Of Human Beings: On the Sovereignty of Life as Surpassing the Rights of Man

by Raoul Vaneigem, Liz Heron

Overview

Raoul Vaneigem is an iconic figure in French philosophy. One of the founding fathers -- along with Guy Debord -- of the Situationist movement, his writings helped trigger the events of May 1968. After the inevitable Situationist split, Vaneigem pursued his own interests, and he has since established a unique place in the world of French political thought. In this new book, he sets out quite literally to create a new declaration of human rights, by updating earlier declarations -- from the French Revolution to the UN declaration in 1948 -- on the grounds that ‘we can no longer make do with the liberties derived from free exchange, while the free circulation of capital is establishing a tyranny that reduces humankind and the earth to a commodity’. By turns playful, poetic and provocative, this is a remarkable book that makes a profoundly serious point about the way in which human rights have been eroded by globalization.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780745320229
Publisher:	Pluto Press
Publication date:	04/20/2003
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.88(h) x 0.61(d)

About the Author

Born in 1934, Raoul Vaneigem was a member of the Situationist International from 1961-1970. Essayist and historian of religion, he has published numerous books on politics and philosophy since his seminal The Revolution of Everday Life (1967). He is rumoured to live in Belgium.

Table of Contents

I. Critique of the declaration of the rights of man...
II. Mercantile freedoms suggest and deny human freedoms
III. No rights can be taken for granted, there are only rights to be fought for
IV. Rights without duties to create a way of living
V. The Rights...

Editorial Reviews

‘All opponents of globalization should carry it in their luggage.' --Le Monde

From the Publisher