Political Affect: Connecting the Social and the Somatic

262 Pages·2009·4.71 MB·English

by  John Protevi

I
. �
c.
ati
m
o
S
e
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 1. oc?id=10370374&ppg=1
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi JOHN PROTEVI
Pr Mi htt
POLITICAL AFFECT
c.
ati
m
o
S
e
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 2. oc?id=10370374&ppg=2
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi
Pr Mi htt
.jl
posthuman ies
CARY WOLFE. SERIES EDITOR
7 Polilical Affect; COlll1eClill9 the Social alJ(i the Somalic
John Protevi
6 Animlll Capillll: Rel1(lerhl[/ Ufe in Biopoliticlil Times
Nicole Shukin
5 DorsaJity; Thinkillg Back til rough Tee/ulDlogy alld Politics
c. David Wills
ati
m
o
e S 4 Bios: Biopolilics alld PIJilosophy
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 3. oc?id=10370374&ppg=3 23 JRDTWuiooldhebn iePetnlhlro ate SR otJpi .o EceHoscs ifpaoe srJo a sMDwitNeoaAe yt
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D 1 The Parasile
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi Michel Serres
Pr Mi htt
POLITICAL AFFECT
Connecting the Social and the Somatic
John Protevi
posthumanities 7
c.
ati
m
o
S
e
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 4. oc?id=10370374&ppg=4 University oj Minnesota Press
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D Minl1eapolis
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi 1.01/(/011
Pr Mi htt
See page 233 for information on previously published material reprinted
in this book.
Copyright 2009 by the Regents of the University of Minnesota
All rights reserved. No part of this publici1tion may be reproduccd. stored in
a retrieval system. or tnmsm.itted. in any form or by <my me.'lns. electronic.
mechanical. photocopying. recording. or othenvise. without the prior written
permission of the publisher.
Published by the University of Minnesota Press
111 Third Avenue South. Suite 290
Minneapolis. MN 55401-2520
http://www.upress.umn.txIu
Librcrry of Congress Cataloging-in-Publci ation Data
Protevi. John
c. Political affect: conm:cting the social and the somatic / John Protevi.
mati p. Clll. - (Posthumanitics: 7)
o
e S IndudL"s bibliogrilphicill rcfercm:cs and index.
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 5. oc?id=10370374&ppg=5 JI3(IApS.2Bb 70PkN1..o01 .l:9Pi at77i-lc<l8k7a.- 2l0p se0a-c28p0i2e1e9n r6 c)6 e-6-5P0h9il-o9s o(hphe:y .a Ilk. T. p.It... lep. .c r)-ISBN 978-0-281006960-6155 I5 00-65
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D TPrhien Utendi ivne rtshiety U onfi Mtedin Sntaestoest ao ifs A anm eeqriucaal o-onp apcoirdt-ufrneeit yp aedpuerc ator and employer.
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi 151413 12 1110 09 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 I
Pr Mi htt
COlltl'Ilts
vii
PREFACE
INTROI)UCTION xi
Part I. A Concept of Bodies Politic
1. Above. Below. and Alongside the Subject 3
2. Bodies Politic 33
Part II. Bodies Politic as Organisms
3. The Organism in Aristotle and Kant 61
4. The Anorganic Body in Deleuze and Guattari 89
Part III. Love. Rage, and Fear
5. Terri Schiavo: The Somatic Body Politic 115
6. The Columbine High School Massacre:
The Transverse Body Politic 141
atic. 7. Hurric.me Katrina: The GovernmenLal Body Politic 163
m
o
S
e
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 6. oc?id=10370374&ppg=6 BCNPINIUOOBDBNTLLCEEIXILSOC UGASRTIAOIOPNNH YH ISTORY 222118931355333
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi
Pr Mi htt
This page intentionally left blank
c.
ati
m
o
S
e
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 7. oc?id=10370374&ppg=7
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi
Pr Mi htt
PreJilce
complements my Political Physics: Delcuze. Derrida, and tile
T HIS BOOK
Bod!) Politic (2001). There. I used the notion of self-organization of male­
rial systems common in complexity theory. as well as the critique of hylo­
morphism that Deleuze and Guattari develop related to that notion. as a
reading grid for certain episodes in the history of Western philosophy. To
provide a focus [or that book. I developed a concept of the "body politic"
to mark the intersection of the social and the somatic and used it in order
to contrast Derrida and Oeleuze basic epistemologic<:J1 and ontological
all
issues. Whereas Political Physics was primarily concerned with tracing the
effects of that concept in reading the philosophical texts of others. here in
PolitiClll Affect 1 pluralize the notion to that of "bodics politic." and add to
it several others ("political physiology" among them). with an eye toward
using them in detailed case studies of the ways in which politics. psychol­
ogy. and physiology intersect in socially embedded and somatically embod­
ied affective cognition.
The notions of bodies politic and political physiology I develop here
reUect a shift in contemporary philosophy. one 1 explored in PolWcal PIIYs­
c. ics: the turn to a new. nonmechanistic materialism. As r argue at some
ati
m length in that book. attaining the neomaterialist standpoint of Deleuze
o
S
he rcquires that wc turn away from a postphenomcnological stancc in which
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 8. oc?id=10370374&ppg=8 matfshoingraednct eer isf eriytgaihailnna liiigtssfi m cficoaaen ntltldihyno a onoatrt" rdtbioesoet ecarasoo rc mjtoneicncoptutlse ecldbami oeteeeguffdnisne tnbc eetuwd sto bsi tfc.yh Tae tnhnch oeteae n prraespircjneteigioacc rtuusi isoolgannnnte liioysofsfy na it( nshoe gfvaa etasd ny miD sstaoetue ldefrmerubals azgo.in amfac n "eeb fnn rotuteroecot daee­
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D sacniodu isnnteersns aalnlyd hfoorl lsoiwgncidfi-coautito cno onnsc tihoeu sbnaessiss )o bf ua tn wonhmichec ahcacnoiustnict sa fnodr ncoonn-­
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi vii
Pr Mi htt
viii Prefacc
deterministic materialism underlying historically variable subjectification
and signification practices. Such a neomaterialism allows for a productive
engagement with contemporary scientific findings and. most important.
for a productive engagcment with political practicc. as I argued with Mark
Bonta in Delclize (Il1d Geoplli1osophy (2004). This book attempts to cash in on
some of that promise.
I have learned from many discussions on these issues with Manola An­
tonioli. Miguel de Bcistegui. Chris Blakely. Rosi Braidotti. Andy Clark.
Jon Cogburn, Amy Cohen. Claire Colebrook, William Connolly. Dan Con­
way. Manuel DeLanda, Ros Diprose, Rich Doyle. Kevin Elliot. Fred Evans,
Peter Hallward. Mark Hansen, Eugene Holland. Len Lawlor, John Marks,
Todd May. Philippe Mengue. John Mullarkey. JetTNealon. Paul Patton. Dan
Selcer. Dan Smith. Charley SLivale. Alberto Toscano, Alistair Welchman.
Bertrand Westphal. and James Williams.
I am grateful Lo the organizers and audience members at conferences
and departmental talks at which I presented various versions of these ideas:
at Birkbeck. Cologne. Edinburgh. Dundee. Duquesne. Limoges. Memphis.
Penn State. the Society for Literature. Science. and the Arts (SLSA). the
Society for Phenomenology and Existential Philosophy (SPEP). Stafford­
shire. Texas Tech. Trent (Ontario). Paris VIII. Vanderbilt. and Villanova. In
writing this book I benefited from a summer research stipend from Louisi­
ana State University's Council on Research: I am grateful for the extended
study this grant allo\"ved.
I am not a scientist or even a philosopher with much technical train­
ing in science. so I am very grateful that many people with those charac­
teristics-among them. Alistair Welchman. Chuck Dyke. Ravi Rau. Phil
Adams. and Vince liCata-would help me with great patience and prompt
atic. replies. [thank them for their assistance and. as is the custom (and a good
m
o custom it is). resolve them of any blame for the clumsiness that remains.
S
e
Connecting the Social and th nnesota Press, 2009. p 9. oc?id=10370374&ppg=9 wwPfweoraha.s sIsota cht anhponudarn m oenJsavxiakdncin dmeeeierlt lyRdaiee binrscmle.tyh saca aienmonradldyrlp asc Drobehooxno vaucr.e sgeaadsp tnAi obstdirtyro a mt fnthnohaaetreslt lpa o.yc ane.o rdsopmLpine reomneycfcme iewattnorolhlartuys ato s iRotn fr f byget ehaCv cneciaea osrUwmoymnne eWimr v Kcseoe huorlnaff.s et pTits.t ht.yhs eee oRorr mmfoi6 egM.aas eT nsiern huB dnPesritc eaiboprssoripodp ooitetnkaf­.
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D Pinrietisast. iMveo. re than that. it ,·..,ould not have been possible at all without their
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi
Pr Mi htt
Preface ix
Finally. along with my colleagues at Louisiana State University. I thank
all my students who listened to what must have sometimes seemed mere
rants as these thoughts came to me in fits and starts. I especially thank
Robcrt Rosc. who somc time ago bccame a friend and colleague as "veil as
a student.
c.
ati
m
o
S
e
h
Connecting the Social and t nnesota Press, 2009. p 10. oc?id=10370374&ppg=10
al Affect : rsity of Mi nicanuc/D
otevi, John (Author). Politic nneapolis, MN, USA: Unive p://site.ebrary.com/lib/domi
Pr Mi htt