Voluntarism promises of proximity as articulated by changing moral elites
(2020) In Contributions to the History of Concepts 15(2). p.80-104- Abstract
The article analyzes the varied meanings historically associated with concepts of voluntarism in relation to social relief as they were articulated by changing moral elites in Denmark from the late nineteenth century until the present. Concepts of voluntarism have historically constituted “normative counterconcepts” that link voluntary practices to desired futures in opposition to alternative modes of organizing. The “proximity” of voluntarism vis-à-vis the “distance” of the state has always been a core meaning, but the concept has drifted across the political spectrum from its first articulation by nineteenth-century conservative Christians to its rediscovery by leftist social researchers in the late twentieth century. Paradoxically,... (More)
The article analyzes the varied meanings historically associated with concepts of voluntarism in relation to social relief as they were articulated by changing moral elites in Denmark from the late nineteenth century until the present. Concepts of voluntarism have historically constituted “normative counterconcepts” that link voluntary practices to desired futures in opposition to alternative modes of organizing. The “proximity” of voluntarism vis-à-vis the “distance” of the state has always been a core meaning, but the concept has drifted across the political spectrum from its first articulation by nineteenth-century conservative Christians to its rediscovery by leftist social researchers in the late twentieth century. Paradoxically, the welfare state helped “proximity” become a core meaning, in contrast to its original social-conservative meaning emphasizing proximity and distance.
(Less)
- author
- Sevelsted, Anders LU
- publishing date
- 2020
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Conceptual history, Counterconcepts, Elites, Moral elites, Social work, Voluntarism, Welfare state
- in
- Contributions to the History of Concepts
- volume
- 15
- issue
- 2
- pages
- 25 pages
- publisher
- Berghahn Books
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85094876471
- ISSN
- 1807-9326
- DOI
- 10.3167/choc.2020.150205
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- no
- id
- 7bab748e-b1e0-4401-810a-931ea646ffb3
- date added to LUP
- 2020-11-13 09:25:44
- date last changed
- 2022-04-19 02:03:35
@article{7bab748e-b1e0-4401-810a-931ea646ffb3,
abstract = {{<p>The article analyzes the varied meanings historically associated with concepts of voluntarism in relation to social relief as they were articulated by changing moral elites in Denmark from the late nineteenth century until the present. Concepts of voluntarism have historically constituted “normative counterconcepts” that link voluntary practices to desired futures in opposition to alternative modes of organizing. The “proximity” of voluntarism vis-à-vis the “distance” of the state has always been a core meaning, but the concept has drifted across the political spectrum from its first articulation by nineteenth-century conservative Christians to its rediscovery by leftist social researchers in the late twentieth century. Paradoxically, the welfare state helped “proximity” become a core meaning, in contrast to its original social-conservative meaning emphasizing proximity and distance.</p>}},
author = {{Sevelsted, Anders}},
issn = {{1807-9326}},
keywords = {{Conceptual history; Counterconcepts; Elites; Moral elites; Social work; Voluntarism; Welfare state}},
language = {{eng}},
number = {{2}},
pages = {{80--104}},
publisher = {{Berghahn Books}},
series = {{Contributions to the History of Concepts}},
title = {{Voluntarism promises of proximity as articulated by changing moral elites}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3167/choc.2020.150205}},
doi = {{10.3167/choc.2020.150205}},
volume = {{15}},
year = {{2020}},
}