Om volledig te worden wat de mens nu slechts in hoop en potentie is, zijn nieuwe vermogens nodig, nieuwe methoden die fundamentele transformaties kunnen bewerkstelligen: het leven veiligstellen, de cognitie opwaarderen en het welbevinden vergroten. Zo kun je Utopia bereiken.

The concept of well-being has emerged as a key category of social and political thought, especially in the fields of moral and political philosophy, development studies, and economics. This book takes a critical look at the notion of well-being by examining what well-being means, or could mean, to people living in a number of different regions including Sudan, Nepal, Papua New Guinea, India, Sierra Leone, and the UK. The contributors take issue with some of the assumptions behind Western concepts of (...) well-being. They explore what characterizes a "good life" and how this idea has been affected by globalization and neoliberalism. The book makes a major contribution to social theory by presenting new analytical models that make sense of the changing shapes of people's life and ethical values. (shrink)