Articulations of Desire: Populism and the Future of Democracy

Projektbeschreibung

Das Konzept des Populismus in neuem Licht

Angesichts der beispiellosen Herausforderungen, mit denen sich Demokratien weltweit konfrontiert sehen, haben Misstrauen und Skepsis zugenommen, was zu politischer Instabilität führt. Die ungewisse Zukunft demokratischer Institutionen wird durch das Wiedererstarken populistischer Strömungen verstärkt, die bestehende Normen infrage stellen und sich über konventionelle politische Weisheiten hinwegsetzen. Das EU-finanzierte Projekt AoD betrachtet Populismus als Ausbruch unterdrückten kollektiven Begehrens und geht dabei von der Vorstellung aus, dass das Nichtreagieren auf Begehren demokratische Prozesse gefährden kann, da es den institutionellen Anspruch auf souveräne demokratische Autorität delegitimiert. Durch die Entwicklung eines Konzepts des politischen Begehrens und die Untersuchung des Wesens des Populismus sucht AoD nach einem neuen Verständnis der demokratischen Kollektivität, das die vorherrschenden liberalen Modelle hinterfragt. Des Weiteren werden konzeptionelle Instrumente für weitere Untersuchungen zur politischen Philosophie und zur Demokratie verwendet.

Ziel

This project argues for a coherent concept of political desire as a necessary step toward understanding the limitations of democratic institutions. As democracies around the world react to unprecedented challenges, distrust of the various national and supranational institutions presiding over North American and European democracy has risen sharply. This skepticism has led to unstable political conditions and an agitated populace. The uncertain future of democratic institutions is magnified by populist resurgences that challenge existing norms and defy conventional political wisdom. A mounting concern to philosophers and political scientists alike, populism has been identified as a significant result – and sometimes source – of political turmoil. However, an understanding of precisely how and why these movements arise and gain traction has not been given due attention from a broader philosophical position. “Articulations of Desire” (AoD) contends that there is more at stake in populism than unrest, demagoguery, and mob rule. Seen through a lenses of order and disorder, rationality and irrationality, populism is thought to be the chaotic and ungovernable whims of the masses. However, this project approaches populism as the eruption of repressed collective desire. This project assert that unresponsiveness to desire often does jeopardize democratic processes, but precisely because it delegitimizes institutional claims to sovereign democratic authority. Here, desire can be defined as a positive vector of expression and demand that is a foundational force of collectivity. By developing a concept of political desire and examining the nature of populism, this project seeks a new understanding of democratic collectivity that challenges dominant Liberal models. By developing this line of inquiry, this project seeks to expand the possibilities for future democratic thought and provide useful conceptual tools for further inquiries into political philosophy and democracy.