On the Challenge of Migration: Critical Hermeneutical Perspectives
Guest Editors: Alison Scott-Baumann and Gonçalo Marcelo

Deadline: April 30, 2018

The chronic Mediterranean refugee crisis brings to the fore how difficult it is to manage large migratory flows and makes evident the uneasiness with which Europe deals with the prospect of having to host its others. Africa, Europe and the Middle East are troubled by each other in ways that require urgent analysis and resolution.  This apparent lack of solidarity even with asylum seekers and forced migrants poses ethical, as well as political challenges. On the one hand, it seems evident that the old Westphalian nation-state paradigm is faced with its own limitations for dealing with problems of global justice. On the other hand, international law is also in itself insufficient, in the absence of coercive power. And one can also argue that the response of the European Union has been lacking in scope and effectiveness to deal with the humanitarian crisis. As such, can the upholding of Human Rights still be considered an integral part of Europe’s collective identity? At the same time, and amid the resurgence of nationalism and the populist threat, are European societies prepared to host “strangers” and really cherish their diversity, or is a conservative backlash prone to lead to an ever more hostile attitude?

This constellation of problems finds a suitable grid of analysis within the critical hermeneutical paradigm. Following the footsteps of authors such as Paul Ricoeur,[1] Charles Taylor or Michael Walzer, to name just a few, the goal is not to devise an ideal theory that draws on abstract principles of justice; it is rather to apply the hermeneutical paradigm to the social and human sciences, taking up our historically constituted societies with their own specificities in order to try and analyse justice problems and solutions in a situated manner, while at the same time being critical and not taking the current social and political situation as being immune to change. The history of ideas of the lands, peoples and languages around the Mediterranean can energise us with rich polysemy that is also characterised by synergies (Plotinus, Neoplatonism, Al Kindi, al-Farabi, Ibn Tufayl, Solomon Ibn Gabirol, Maimonides, Adonis and many others). What can we learn, for example, from Sufism and its troubles experienced at the hands of various fundamentalisms?

 In this issue, we are thus interested in contributions that can stem from a multiplicity of fields (ethics, political philosophy / political theory, social philosophy, sociology, theology) and help us think about migration and the problems it poses. Possible topics include (but are not limited to):

• The capacity of our societies to embrace multiculturalism (Taylor, Kymlicka) and recognition practices (Honneth, Ricoeur, Taylor)
• The ethical challenge of hosting the stranger (Derrida, Ricoeur, Kearney)
• Migration as a challenge for social philosophy
• Migration and global justice
• Anti-immigration sentiments: the problem of nationalism and populism
• How to frame migration: the problem of collective narrative identities (Ricoeur)
• Polysemy of Mediterranean cultures (Plotinus, Adonis, Ibn Tufayl , Maimonides)

 

Author Guidelines

Authors are invited to follow the Author Guidelines in preparing the manuscript for submission. If necessary, the editors will exercise the right to alter/modify manuscripts  in accordance with the stylistic and formal lines of the journal. 

Submission of papers to Critical Hermeneutics is taken to imply that the manuscript is not under consideration by other journals, and that it is not a published work.  

This Journal follows a double-blind refereeing process for each submission. The reviewers' evaluations determine whether a paper will be accepted or rejected in accordance with four criteria: 1) Excellent: the paper does not need any change; 2) Good: the paper needs minor changes; 3) Interesting: the resubmission is recommended after consistent changes and/or revisions; 4) Insufficient: the paper is rejected. 

In case of resubmission (points 2 and 3), the same reviewers will be charged to re-evaluate the paper.

The peer-review process, as the complete editorial workflow, is managed within the Open Journal System (OJS) platform.

 

1. Language

The manuscript can be submitted in one of the following languages: Italian, French, Spanish, German, Portuguese, or English (British or American standard; not the mixture of both). All manuscripts will be submitted (and possibly published) with two abstracts (maximum length of 150 words for each one), one in English (British or American standard) and one in the language of the manuscript. Keywords (from 3 to a maximum of 5) will be indicated accordingly.

Manuscripts with significant grammatical or syntactical mistakes/problems will be immediately discarded without starting the refereeing process.   

 

2. Length of paper 

The length of the paper should not exceed 50000 characters (spaces included). Articles should be typed in 1,5 space, including footnotes and references (placed at the end of the paper).  

 

3. First Page / Title Page

First Page / Title Page is a separated page before the text, which starts with the abstracts. It must include the following information:

-  Title

-  Author(s)'s name(s) and affiliation(s)

-  Telephone number and e-mail address

During the process of refereeing  this first page will be separated from the rest. During the double-blind refereeing process the author must not be recognised by the referees. The manuscript and the reference must thus be suitable for blind review.

 

4. Subdivision of the article

It is highly recommended to clearly articulate the paper in numbered and titled paragraphs/sections. Sections should be numbered 1, 2, 3, etc. Internal subsections should be numbered 1.1., 1.2., 1.3., ... 2.1., 2.2., etc. 

 

5. Style

Authors should follow the latest APA style edition (see, www.apastyle.org), which is the editing style followed by CH.  

 

6. References

Authors should arrange the references accordingly with the latest APA style.