Values, Valuations, and Power. Re-Assessing and Applying Joas’ Theory Of Values

In this paper I will use Joas’ theory of values to address two important issues – i.e., the relation between values and valuations, and the relation between values, conflict, and power. The structure of the paper runs as follows. In the first section of the paper, I reconstruct Joas’ definitions and theory of values. In the second section of the paper, I show how Joas’ theory can contribute to the values-valuations problem. Specifically, I focus on the mechanism through which the valuation of specific situations potentially involves a redefinition of values. In the third section of the paper, I apply this reconstruction of Joas’ theory to the relation between values, conflict, and power. The critical focus of this discussion will be Wendy Brown’s Nietzsche-inspired interpretation of the contemporary conservative reactivation of traditional values.