Normative Hybridity in Contemporary Greece: Beyond “Modernizers” and “Underdogs” in Socio-Political Discourse and Practice

Abstract

Extending analytical frameworks that have been developed to explore culture, society and law through the concept of hybridity, the concept of “normative hybridity” is here introduced to the study of socio-political discourse and related practice with particular reference to contemporary Greece. Drawing on insights from a range of disciplines, mainstream dichotomous conceptions of occidentalist “modernizers” and orientalist recalcitrant “underdogs” are challenged by bringing attention to the commonplace hybrid discourse and practice of “modernizers,” on one hand, and the normative underpinnings of the “underdog” mentality, on the other hand. Against the stereotyping of individuals and groups as either “modernizers” or “underdogs,” it is argued that normative hybridity in Greece effectively presents a public reservoir of moral logic from which all individuals selectively draw inspiration and justification for their actions.