Analytical Category or political-normative Passe-Partout’?

bibliographic notes on the concept of civil society

Abstract

After first analyzing the history of the concept civil society within modern social theory, the article closely examines the recent rediscovery of this category. It identifies two distinct lines in current theoretical and political use of the concept: an “emphatic” line and a “moderate” line. Lastly, it looks at how this expression is employed in the context of Brazilian democratization and characterizes the meanings different social actors have attached to it during the various transition phases.