当有这么多的道德教育告诉我们要看重公正的旁观者时，愤怒和正义之间的关系是什么，会是理性的冷漠距离吗？作者Sonali Chakravarti 在《歌颂暴怒》中， 透过仔细检视从1996年开始到1998年都无法平静的南非真相与和解委员会，这当中的每一天，都有不同的人上台说话，他们哭泣、尖叫、哀号，诉说着种族隔离政策带来的暴行。虽然这些公开的情绪行为让人不舒服也令人惊讶，但她认为，这样的作法确实带来了巨大的影响，而且对转型正义与未来的政治可能非常关键。
         
Chakravarti 提到英国的经济学家亚当‧斯密（Adam Smith）与德国哲学家汉娜‧鄂兰（Hannah Arendt），他们都出了名的了解涉及政治的风险与排除政治的代价。以他们的观点为基础，她认为，愤怒的表现与接受显示出，真相在某些状况下，像是新兴的政治秩序出现时、公民全面参与遇到障碍时以及政治生活完全受限时，是没有用的。最重要的是，愤怒和技能发展需要真的被听见，它会在有同样尊严与价值的人群中，培养出信任与认同。在这个不断改革的时代，《歌颂暴怒》是一件政治哲学的重要作品，它让我们清楚了解到面对政治时，我们最多变、重要的反应之一。
 
好评
“Sing the Rage is a highly innovative piece of work that contributes on many levels to the study of transitional justice and to our understanding of the role of emotions in political life. It combines empirical case studies with conceptual analysis and work in the history of political thought in fruitful and exciting ways. The book will surely generate lots of attention and be widely read.”
(Sharon Krause, Brown University)
 
“Anger and a desire for revenge are widespread in postconflict settings, and yet transitional justice institutions have conventionally failed to engage with the anger of survivors, and liberal theorists have ruled expressions of anger either irrelevant or outside the boundaries of acceptable speech. Chakravarti makes a powerful and sophisticated case for why listening to and recognizing the full range of survivors’ experiences is necessary and may cultivate trust, reactivate citizenship, and facilitate a redrawing of the social contract. Sing the Rage reevaluates the Nuremberg and Eichmann trials and the hearings of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the light of the social and political theory of Hannah Arendt and Adam Smith, and it represents a major philosophical contribution to the field of transitional justice. This book is recommended for all those interested in the complex moral and political dilemmas after mass atrocities.”
(Richard Ashby Wilson, author of Writing History in International Criminal Trials)
 
关于作者
Sonali Chakravarti是卫斯理大学政府学系的助理教授