ABSTRACT

In mapping out the field of human rights for those studying and researching within both humanities and social science disciplines, the Handbook of Human Rights not only provides a solid foundation for the reader who wants to learn the basic parameters of the field, but also promotes new thinking and frameworks for the study of human rights in the twenty-first century.

The Handbook comprises over sixty individual contributions from key figures around the world, which are grouped according to eight key areas of discussion:

  • foundations and critiques;

  • new frameworks for understanding human rights;

  • world religious traditions and human rights;

  • social, economic, group, and collective rights;

  • critical perspectives on human rights organizations, institutions, and practices;

  • law and human rights;

  • narrative and aesthetic dimension of rights;

  • geographies of rights.

In its presentation and analysis of the traditional core history and topics, critical perspectives, human rights culture, and current practice, this Handbook proves a valuable resource for all students and researchers with an interest in human rights.

chapter |5 pages

Introduction

part |128 pages

Foundations and critiques

part |86 pages

New frameworks for understanding human rights

chapter |9 pages

What are human rights?

Four schools of thought

chapter |16 pages

Human rights as status relations

A sociological approach to understanding human rights

chapter |14 pages

Becoming irrelevant

The curious history of anthropology and human rights

chapter |15 pages

Rights, reform, and resources

Malthusian reflections on scarcity and old age

part |54 pages

World religious traditions and human rights

chapter |9 pages

A non-religious basis for the idea of human rights

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights as overlapping consensus

part |144 pages

Social, economic, group, and collective rights

chapter |14 pages

Group rights

A defense

chapter |20 pages

Economic rights

Past, present, and future

chapter |13 pages

Language rights

The forgotten dimension of human rights

chapter |16 pages

The development of international child law

The definition of “the child” and implementation mechanisms

chapter |10 pages

The right to food

chapter |5 pages

Fetal rights

part |161 pages

Critical perspectives on human rights organizations, institutions, and practices

chapter |9 pages

The humanitarian-human rights nexus

A global culture perspective

chapter |15 pages

Bystanders to human rights abuses

A psychosocial perspective

chapter |10 pages

Have human rights failed humans?

The discord between human prosperity and human rights

part |59 pages

Narrative and aesthetic dimensions of human rights

part |50 pages

Geographies of rights