Europe: Utopia and Reality. Essence, Meaning and Value of an Idea
Europe: Utopia and Reality. Essence, Meaning and Value of an Idea

Summary/Abstract: The basic argument of this essay is that Europe has no frontiers. No physical frontiers, to be more precise. And, accordingly, no fixed identity either. No positive identity that may be pinned down with precision, and raised to the condition of instrument both of inclusion, at least potentially, of all those who happen to share the characteristics and values it encompasses, and of exclusion of all those who happen not to share them and choose different ones. Instead, it is argued, at the heart of European identity we encounter a systematic commitment, both to self-questioning and to plurality. The denial of a fixed ascriptive identity and the willingness to remain open to receiving from the outside – and incorporating – multiple values and identities, namely all those that, in the rawlsian formulation, manage to pass the test of our reflected judgement and may constitute an occasion for Europe to grow.

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