Publisher's Synopsis
Introduction This thesis falls in the area of social and political philosophy which has become one of the frontal areas of philosophical research, thanks to its organic relation with not only ethics but also metaphysics (that is social and human ontology) and epistemology. This is not surprising because the recent developments in sociopolitical philosophy have reopened the various issues concerning the social world, human nature including its relation to the natural word, the nature of knowledge, belief and ideology and of course our responses to the issues right/wrong distinction. One of the central themes of contemporary social and political philosophy is modernity. As Charles Taylor rightly says, 'from the beginning, the number one problem of modern social science has been modernity itself." (2004:1) However, he could have added humanities in this connection. Whether it is in the literary studies or historical studies or in philosophical studies modernity has emerged as a core theme. The very fact that the theme has commanded such a multifarious approaches speaks immensely of its intellectual richness. In fact, it is one of the prime themes of what today goes by multidisciplinary or transdisciplinary inquiry. The thematic significance mentioned above owes itself to the following reasons: firstly, modernity is primarily adoption not of certain gargets or technological innovations but of certain attitudes, beliefs, and commitments which together constitute what Charles Taylor calls a 'social imaginary' which is radically distinct from its pre-modern counterpart, and which makes intelligible our present day institutional practices and ways of living. Secondly, modernity has brought about a fundamental division between its protagonists and antagonists, not only at a global level and at the level of distinct social settings but also at the level of individual,
