General Information
Course Description
9554 - Power, Politics and Subjects: An Examination of Key Texts in Critical Social Theory - The flourishing of social theory influenced by the linguistic turn in philosophy, and more recently by cultural studies and feminist theory, has resulted in a fruitful interrogation of categories and concerns of the political. This seminar retraces key turns in the making of this tradition, beginning with Marx's seminal work, and explores the contributions of certain 20th century thinkers to the debate. It will focus on the following themes: What is the nature and locus of power; who are the subjects of political domination and/or political change; and what is the terrain of the "political" as such. Each of these will be examined against the broader preoccupation in contemporary social science theory with the productive tension between an emphasis on the constitutive role of discourse/culture, and on its material embeddedness, or contexts. In seminar discussions we will explore how these three main themes are addressed.
