Description
PANDEMIC. IDEAS AT A CROSSROADS
Book Summary
This collective work, coordinated by José Luis Villacañas, proposes a radical turn in contemporary philosophical thought. Far from abstract speculations on the post-pandemic future, the book analyzes the confluence of the 2008 financial crisis and the 2019 health crisis as a historical turning point. The reader will find a critical and situated reflection that seeks to understand the irreversible processes that have crystallized, moving beyond the horizon of hegemonic neoliberalism. It is an exercise in philosophy applied to the most urgent social and political reality.
What is it about?
The book addresses the need for a change of course in philosophy, orienting it toward a historically positioned social critique and reflection. The authors examine how the 2008 financial crisis and the 2019 pandemic, far from being isolated events, have converged to show the need to overcome neoliberalism. The work maintains that it has not been abstract critique, but rather attention to the real course of historical processes—now inseparable from life and nature—that has evidenced this need. It is an analysis that links economics, politics, biology, and philosophy to understand the current crossroads.
Main themes
- Critique of neoliberalism as the hegemonic horizon of recent decades.
- Confluence of the 2008 financial crisis and the 2019 health crisis as linked historical processes.
- Need for a philosophy that is less speculative and more attentive to social and historical critique.
- Relationship between economic, vital, and natural processes in the configuration of the present.
- Analysis of the irreversible processes that have crystallized at the current crossroads.
Who is it recommended for?
This book is aimed at readers interested in political philosophy, critical sociology, and contemporary thought. It is especially relevant for those seeking a rigorous and well-founded analysis of the social and economic transformations triggered by the pandemic, beyond media discourses or simplistic predictions. It will also be of great value to students and professionals in the social sciences, humanities, and philosophy who wish to understand the intersection between economic and health crises and historical becoming.
What this book contributes
- A framework for philosophical and historical analysis to understand the current situation beyond immediacy.
- A well-founded critique of neoliberalism based on the observation of real processes, not abstract ideologies.
- An interdisciplinary perspective that integrates economics, politics, biology, and philosophy into a single explanatory narrative.
- The possibility of rethinking the role of philosophy as a tool for critical intervention in social reality.
Technical specifications
- Author: Various Authors; José Luis Villacañas
- Publisher: Biblioteca Nueva
- Language: Spanish
- Subject: Interdisciplinary studies, Philosophy, Social interaction, Sociology, Social and statistical research
- Collection: Essay
- Binding: Other
- Date of publication: March 2021
- Number of pages: 304
- Weight: 450 g
Editorial review
PANDEMIC. IDEAS AT A CROSSROADS is presented as a necessary work for those seeking a profound and critical analysis of our time. Its main value lies in the proposal of a methodological shift in philosophy, anchoring it in the observation of concrete historical processes. The confluence of the 2008 and 2019 crises offers an original and powerful prism for rethinking neoliberalism and its alternatives. It is a demanding but rewarding read for an audience willing to question dominant narratives about the post-pandemic future.