Thomas Dumm is a professor of political ethics whose work delves into the profound questions of human existence and politics. His writings explore the intricate relationship between individual lives and societal structures, often focusing on themes of loneliness, the ordinary, and freedom. Dumm seeks to uncover the fundamental principles that shape our political systems and ethical understandings, encouraging readers to contemplate the complexities of human liberty and justice.
'What does it mean to be lonely?' This book takes us beyond social circumstances and into the deeper forces that shape our very existence as modern individuals. It shows how loneliness shapes the contemporary division between public and private, our inability to live with each other honestly and in comity.
Exploring the concept of freedom, Thomas Dumm engages with Michel Foucault's ideas to challenge traditional views on modern liberty. He argues that Foucault's critical genealogy reveals how individuals are shaped by larger societal forces, yet it also highlights the potential for liberation and understanding one's freedom. By reconciling Foucault's insights with contemporary liberal thought, Dumm offers a fresh perspective on the complexities of freedom in late modernity, positioning Foucault as both a foundational thinker and a critical voice in liberal theory.
Americans encounter their homes in ways comforting and haunting: as an imagined refuge or a place of mastery and domination, a destination or a place to escape. Drawing on literature, personal experience, and the histories of slavery, incarceration, and homesteading, Thomas Dumm offers a meditation on the richness and poverty of the idea of home.