Lessons From The Eastern European Dissent: From ‘Living in Truth’ To Re-working A Strategy for Cosmopolitanism
Lessons From The Eastern European Dissent: From ‘Living in Truth’ To Re-working A Strategy for Cosmopolitanism

Summary/Abstract: Is the legacy of resistance under communism dead? What can one learn from dissenters’ theorizing about morality? In this paper I explore the question of the practical lessons of Eastern European dissent. By reflecting on the experience of Charter 77 and Havel’s Power of the Powerless, I argue that the experience of Chartists represents an important resource for understanding resistance to ideology and power. Living in truth articulates the ideal of speaking the truth publicly and of being aware about “here and now.” By challenging various cosmopolitan understandings of identity, I claim that moral cosmopolitanism may greatly learn from dissenters’ practice of resistance. I conclude that our moral choices depend on solidarity, as well as on the capacity to engage with truth

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