Liberal fatalism, COVID 19 and the politics of impossibility

Bacevic, Jana; McGoey, Linsey

doi:10.1080/03085147.2024.2312710

Economy and Society

2024

DOI: 10.1080/03085147.2024.2312710

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Liberal fatalism, COVID 19 and the politics of impossibility

Jana Bacevic,

Linsey McGoey

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2024

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Cited by 2 publications

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Transparency in action or political fiction? The pre-inquiry phase of the UK COVID-19 Inquiry

Moore,

Manning,

Tchilingirian

et al. 2024

Br Polit

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This article examines how public inquiries come into being through a detailed analysis of the pre-inquiry phase of the UK COVID-19 Inquiry. We focus on two key points of contestation—around the timing of the inquiry and its terms of reference—and suggest that what is at stake during the pre-stage of an inquiry is its ontological and epistemological orientation. Our analysis traces the emergence of two distinct positions during this phase: a grassroots position (conceiving of the inquiry as a response to the experience of collective grief) and an official position (conceiving of the inquiry as a means of learning lessons). Particular attention is given to the latter position and what it reveals about the rhetorical function of transparency in confirming a political commitment to institutional accountability, at the same time as working towards a particular conception of the inquiry as a practical task, expansive in remit, and future oriented.

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Transparency in action or political fiction? The pre-inquiry phase of the UK COVID-19 Inquiry

Moore,

Manning,

Tchilingirian

et al. 2024

Br Polit

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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What is social science if not critical?

Bacevic

2024

British Journal of Sociology

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This short article represents a contribution to the debate on the motion “Social science is explanation, or it is nothing.” While in the format of parliamentary debating the contribution would fall on the side of the opposition, I will not be arguing against explanation as such. The work of explaining is in no way oppositional to or mutually exclusive with critique. Instead, my contribution will revolve around two arguments: one is that both critique and explanation exhibit characteristics we commonly attribute to science; the other is that reserving the label of science for explanation draws a boundary around social sciences in ways that exclude many of the interesting things it does. Some of the examples include the sociological analysis of governmental approaches to the COVID‐19 pandemic, or critical analysis of concepts such as “cancel culture” or “terrorism.” The conclusion is that explanation and critique are mutually supporting elements of science, and that combined they give us insights we cannot glean from either alone.

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Liberal fatalism, COVID 19 and the politics of impossibility

Cited by 2 publications

References 46 publications

Transparency in action or political fiction? The pre-inquiry phase of the UK COVID-19 Inquiry

Transparency in action or political fiction? The pre-inquiry phase of the UK COVID-19 Inquiry

What is social science if not critical?

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