Chantal Mouffe

In recent years, the promises of the populist moment have faltered, as seen in the defeats of Jeremy Corbyn, Bernie Sanders, and Jean-Luc Mélenchon. In addition, the pandemic has brought about a strong need for protection, creating a favourable terrain for authoritarian forms of politics. This new situation represents a challenge for the left, whose rationalism and modernist idea of...

Chantal Mouffe is one of the most influential political theorists at work today. Her work has influenced political parties across Europe and continues to inform the direction of left politics. In this work, The Return of the Political, Mouffe argues that liberal democracy misunderstands the problems of ethnic, religious, and nationalist conflicts because of its inadequate conception of politics.