On progress: a thick conception of moral-political progress

Thesis

The concept of progress played a central role in political theorising during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. However, only a small number of political theorists engage with the concept today. This thesis argues that political theorists should re-engage with the concept of progress and investigates what form a conception of progress must take for it to enrich the normative toolbox of political theorists. The thesis begins by outlining the reasons why political theorists turned away from the concept of progress and then sets out the positive reasons why political theorists ought to re-engage with it. It clarifies that, in normative political theory, progress refers to moral-political progress and taxonomizes conceptions of moral political progress according to their normative-teleological, causal agential, and historical elements. It distinguishes between thin and thick concepts of progress and argues that the thick concept is the relevant one as it enables all-things-considered judgements about moral-political change. The thesis then advances in two sections. Section One engages in a geistesgeschichte analysis of three major historical conceptions of progress – Enlightenment, Kantian, and Hegelian – and evaluates their normative-teleological, causal-agential, and historical elements to assess which aspects remain tenable. Section Two engages in a conceptual analysis of the two contemporary approaches to theorising about a thick conception of progress. The thesis criticises and rejects the approach of philosophical pragmatism. It then defends the approach outlined by Amy Allen and highlights aspects of the approach that can be enhanced. To this end, the thesis integrates into the Allenian approach the methodological resources of Michael Walzer. The thesis concludes by detailing the resulting conception of moral-political progress, outlining how it can respond to the conceptual concerns, and identifying the commitments that must be maintained for it to serve as a tool for political theorising.

Authors: Wilkinson, DA

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-gpv2d7e8e
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English
• Keywords: moral-political progress; political theory