Multiculturalism without Culture is a book written by Anne Phillips

Anne Phillips

Anne Phillips is Professor of Political and Gender Theory at the London School of Economics , where she is based at the Gender Institute and Government Department.-Profile:...

. The topic of multiculturalism

Multiculturalism

Multiculturalism is the appreciation, acceptance or promotion of multiple cultures, applied to the demographic make-up of a specific place, usually at the organizational level, e.g...

 is explored by Phillips with reference to such subjects as Feminism

Feminism

Feminism is a collection of movements aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, and social rights and equal opportunities for women. Its concepts overlap with those of women's rights...

, Anthropology

Anthropology

Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...

, Political Theory, Law

Law

Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior, wherever possible. It shapes politics, economics and society in numerous ways and serves as a social mediator of relations between people. Contract law regulates everything from buying a bus...

, and Philosophy

Philosophy

Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...

. Her inspiration to write the book stemmed from the contrasting concerns of multiculturalism challenging the rights of women and feminism encroaching upon the well-being of cultures. While Phillips presents many different perspectives on multiculturalism, her general argument in the book can be summed up as: “It is time for elaborating a version of multiculturalism that dispenses with reified notions of culture, engages more ruthlessly with cultural stereotypes, and refuses to subordinate the rights and interests of women to the supposed traditions of their culture.”

Summary

In the book, Phillips elaborates on the idea of a multiculturalism without culture. In this model, the conception of culture as unchanging and domineering (A view that Phillips argues is held by many governments and people alike) is disposed in favor of the idea that culture is fluid and that the individual in the culture, not the culture group itself, has rights and is the most important element. A central part of her theory rests on the idea that people in minority cultures have autonomy

Autonomy

Autonomy is a concept found in moral, political and bioethical philosophy. Within these contexts, it is the capacity of a rational individual to make an informed, un-coerced decision...

. Her discussion weighs many different perspectives on multiculturalism provided by an array of modern writers on the subject. She consistently keeps feminist theory as a primary foundation from which she structures her arguments. The book ends with her vouching for the increasing of consultative services for minority groups and increase of dialogue between them and governments.

See also

• Anne Phillips
  Anne Phillips
  Anne Phillips is Professor of Political and Gender Theory at the London School of Economics , where she is based at the Gender Institute and Government Department.-Profile:...
  
  
• Will Kymlicka
  Will Kymlicka
  Will Kymlicka is a Canadian political philosopher best known for his work on multiculturalism. He is currently Professor of Philosophy and Canada Research Chair in Political Philosophy at Queen's University at Kingston, and Recurrent Visiting Professor in the Nationalism Studies program at the...
  
  
• Bhikhu Parekh
• Islamic dress controversy in Europe