Recognition of cultural differences in the social public sphere: (A critique of Charles Taylor's Politics of Recognition)

Given the increasing cultural diversity in the Western societies, many political philosophers have tried to study culture and cultural differences in the political arena. One example is Charles Taylor, the Canadian socialist philosopher, whose “Politics of Recognition” and philosophical argument for the recognition of cultural differences in the political arena attracted the attention of many commentators. However, Taylor can be criticized not only for politicizing all cultural differences but also for assuming that the moral necessity of recognizing different cultures arises from their being considered worthy. His argument to prove and limit the necessity of recognizing cultural differences are also untenable. Moreover, his account is confined to geographically concentrated cultural minorities.