Philipp Dann has been invited by the College of France’s assembly, upon the recommendation of Professor Samantha Besson, as part of the agreement signed with Humboldt University of Berlin.
Abstract
Ongoing debates surrounding colonial legacies in a multipolar world mark a new phase that I characterize as reflexive globalization. While traditionally viewed in economic terms and often seen as a unidirectional process ultimately leading to “Westernization,” globalization in this new phase also brings to light critical intellectual dimensions, becoming more multidirectional. The positions of the South and the North are being redefined and rebalanced. In this phase, the Northern foundations of concepts and epistemic assumptions are increasingly challenged due to their colonial and imperial legacies. Representative democracy is one such concept that has deep roots in Western political and constitutional thought yet has taken on various forms around the world. My lecture will explore how ideas of representative democracy spread around the world, the forms they took, and where overlaps and divergences lie. The lecture will also examine the approaches and methodologies needed to trace this journey and understand representative democracy in more globally reflexive ways.
