Suchergebnisse

Explores how Carl Schmitt & Michel Foucault develop a theory of state power that ties the internal order of a state to its external relations. Significant differences between the two thinkers are pointed out, along with areas in which their theories complement each other, including how Schmitt's theories balance Foucault's overly mechanistic account of a decline of sovereignty which discounts the impact of individuals & representation in politics. Problematic aspects of Foucault's analysis of biopolitics & biopower are pointed out & Schmitt's formalism is criticized as a "victory over formless matter." Other issues examined include Foucault's description of the modern State; interpretations of Foucault's claim that "everything is political" in the context of biopower & biopolitics; contrasts between Schmitt's & Foucault's definitions of the political; ways in which both thinkers approach the concept of the real; & Foucault's apology for liberalism, especially German "ordered liberalism." Special attention is given to Foucault's formulation of a "radical critique of the recurring phobias of the state & the resulting inflationary critical commonplaces.". J. Lindroth