Single Idea 23141

[catalogued under 24. Political Theory / D. Ideologies / 6. Liberalism / c. Liberal equality]

Full Idea

A criticism of the left is that it is essentialist at some moments, and wildly anti-essentialist at others. We can call this opportunistic essentialism. Gender is fluid - except for transgender kids. Race is a construction - except for white races.

Gist of Idea

Left-wingers are inconsistent in their essentialist descriptions of social groups

Source

Adam Gopnik (A Thousand Small Sanities [2019], 3)

Book Reference

Gopnik,Adam: 'A Thousand Small Sanities' [riverrun 2019], p.175


A Reaction

[compressed] Interesting. Gopnik's solution seems to be to abandon all social essentialism as wicked. In this context he is probably right, but I am firmly committed to the idea that many entities in the world have essential natures. 'Bourgeois'.