Greece Facing Herself: The Past and Present as Fate

The main claim of this paper is that the recent Greek economic crisis is not the sole or indeed the major cause of the current predicament, but is itself an outcome of a more long-term ‘cultural’, social and political crisis. Although current debates tend to overemphasize economic considerations and international factors, the view of the author is that, although important, these factors, when discussed in isolation, tend to conceal rather than disclose the ‘meaning’ of a way of life that is in crisis. Therefore, instead of discussing nomological causes, this paper tries to point towards the content of beliefs and various articulations of beliefs that have shaped everyday conduct, and highlight social and political practices that have constituted social life.