The public and private distinction is essential to our moral and political vocabularies as it continues to structure our social and legal practices. This work offers a multidisciplinary perspective on this distinction which has been at the centre of controversial debate in recent years. The focus of the debate has been on delineating acceptable boundaries between public and private in economic, social and cultural spheres. What is the nature and scope of citizenship? What are the implications of new reproductive technologies? And what is the fate of state sovereignty in a globalized world economy? At first glance these questions may appear unrelated, yet they all raise underlying and serious concerns regarding the scope and proper boundaries between the public and the private.