Conceptions of publicness and privateness structure not only our thinking about society and ourselves, but also, by structuring our institutions and practices, dictate how we act within society. Originally published in 1983, the complexity inherent in the distinction between public and private is explored fully in this book.

Opening chapters examine the familiar western liberal understanding of the public and the private; how it reflects not always coherent ideas about the relation of individuals to society, and how it structures legal, political, economic and moral practices and institutions.

Attention is turned to Hegelian, Marxist and feminist critiques on the public and private dichotomy, and the study concludes with a comparative analysis of the public and the private in three non-western forms of society. In all, this study provides a fascinating insight into the ways different societies see themselves and into the concepts that shape society today.