New Research Project: The Social Imagination Collective
We look closely at the fringes of social phenomena, we push unusual perspectives, and we take minority views seriously. We are a collective because we pursue research jointly. Our shared question is: How is a better social world achievable, and what do neglected forms of social imagination bring to the table in this pursuit?
Social philosophers and theorists often imagine a better world. One strand of thinking, popular in philosophy, fixates on creating models of a just society. Relatedly, philosophers have tended to valorise certain means of social change: through theory, reasoned debate and argument. More subtle means of persuasion, or the use of rhetoric, art and emotion, are viewed with suspicion. On this received view, any reasons or arguments that we offer must be justified from a neutral perspective. The Social Imagination Collective approaches things differently. While we recognise the force and value of a good argument, we want to explore the potential of other means of social change. What role can imagination or art play in social change? What is the function of the activist? How do empathy and embodied understanding help us better understand one another?
We are interested both in what some of these neglected forms of persuasion can bring to social discourse, and how existent, reason-governed institutions can be amended to become more socially responsible. For instance, how should public policy be formulated to better respond to the needs and concerns of citizens? What would a more socially responsible science look like? If objective reason has long been the dominant ideal for achieving social change, we study the alternatives to this ideal: here gathered under the label ‘social imagination’.