The Limitations of Narrative Community―Investigating Contemporary Theories and Practices of Self-Determination and Hao Yeh’s Arendtian Theory of Narrative Community

This article engages with the ongoing debates over Professor Hao Yeh's new book, Shicha Zhengzhi, Zhengzhi Shicha (A Politics of Différance), by discussing the international challenges to his theory of narrative community. From a theoretical perspective, the article argues that political theories of self-determination cannot possibly contribute to the formation of a community's story despite Yeh seemingly endorsing their potential to do so. From an international legal perspective, Yeh seems to fail to explain how his theory of narrative synchronicity can deal with the différance between the story of a community and the existing story of international society. Although the article attempts to anticipate a response by exploring Iris Young's thoughts on selfdetermination, this response turns out to be unsatisfactory. Overall, Yeh must respond to these international challenges to his theory of narrative community on both the theoretical and practical levels.