Ideology and Cultural Identity: Modernity and the Third World Presence

This text discusses three of the most important concepts in the social sciences: ideology, reason and cultural identity. These ideas are at the centre of contemporary debates about modernity and postmodernity. The book analyzes these debates not merely in the context of European thought, but also in a dialogue with the realities of the Third World, especially Latin America. The author expounds and critically analyzes the theories of ideology which inform or derive from currents of thought opposed to modernity, from Schopenhauer to postmodernity. One concern of the book is to explore some European conceptions of the Third World. A comparison between such theories leads to a novel interpretation of the relation between "reason" and racism. Jorge Larrain also considers some issues concerning the relation between cultural identity and personal identity, in relation to processes of globalization. This book should be of interest to students and professionals working in the fields of social theory, development studies and Third World issues.