This book reformulates the sociological subdiscipline known as the sociology of knowledge. Knowledge is presented as more than ideology, including as well false consciousness, propaganda, science and art.

ABSTRACTRevisiting the trend of identifying populism with extreme right parties, in this paper we aim to problematize such associations within the context of today’s Europe. Drawing on examples from relevant parties in France and the Netherlands, and applying a discourse-theoretical methodology, we test the hypothesis that such parties are better categorized primarily as nationalist and only secondarily – and reluctantly – as ‘populist’. Our hypothesis follows the remarks of scholars who have stressed that the central theme in the discourse of (...) such parties is not the staging of an antagonism between a ‘people’ and an ‘elite’, but rather the opposition of an ethnic community with its alleged dangerous ‘others’. In this context, we propose a discursive methodology able to differentiate between ‘populist’ and ‘nationalist’ discourses by locating the core signifiers in each discourse in relation to peripheral ones, as well as by clarifying the nature of the axial antagonisms put forth. (shrink)

ABSTRACTEven if a coherent Marxian theory of language does not exist, it is well known that Marx refers to the concepts of language and sign in several passages of his writings. The Italian scholar Ferruccio Rossi-Landi framed Marx's outlines into a semiotic perspective. This theoretical proposal had two purposes: on the one hand, Rossi-Landi tried to demonstrate how certain analytical instruments developed by the Marxian critique of political economy can contribute to a better understanding of semiotic processes. On the other (...) hand, he attempted to illustrate how a semiotic methodology was present at an early stage in certain fundamental parts of Marxian theory, i.e. in the analysis of ideologies, of the commodity-form, and in the critique of political economy. In this paper, I would like to illustrate how Rossi-Landi's materialistic semiotics shares certain fundamental categories and research fields with Critical Discourse Analysis, especially in the version structured by Norman Fairclough. Nevertheless, notwithstanding these elements of convergence, I believe that the two approaches present fundamental divergences, deriving – among other things – from a different interpretation of the role of language and discourse in Marx's economic works. (shrink)

This book brings together contributions that scrutinize the relation between the material and the discursive. Highlighting the materiality of discourse and the entanglement of matter and meaning, the volume explores how a materialist discourse analysis and theory can be put into practice.

In this hugely influential book, Laclau and Mouffe examine the workings of hegemony and contemporary social struggles, and their significance for democratic theory. With the emergence of new social and political identities, and the frequent attacks on Left theory for its essentialist underpinnings, Hegemony and Socialist Strategy remains as relevant as ever, positing a much-needed antidote against ‘Third Way’ attempts to overcome the antagonism between Left and Right.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be (...) preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. To ensure a quality reading experience, this work has been proofread and republished using a format that seamlessly blends the original graphical elements with text in an easy-to-read typeface. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant. (shrink)

"Le mot de philosophie politique ne désigne aucun genre ou territoire de la philosophie. Il est le nom d'une rencontre polémique où s'exprime le paradoxe de la politique : son absence de fondement propre. La politique commence quand l'ordre naturel de la domination et la répartition des parts entre les parties de la société sont interrompus par l'apparition d'une partie surnuméraire, le démos, qui identifie la collection des incomptés au tout de la communauté. L'égalité, qui est la condition non politique (...) de la politique, ne fait effet que par le jeu de cette partie litigieuse qui institue la communauté politique comme communauté du litige. À partir de ce mécompte premier s'institue une logique de la mésentente, également éloignée de la discussion consensuelle et du tort absolu. La "philosophie politique", elle, commence avec la récusation platonicienne de l'apparence, du mécompte et du litige propres à la démocratie, et la requête d'une politique "en vérité". On s'interrogera sur les transformations du régime de cette vérité, de l'archipolitique platonicienne à la métapolitique marxienne, et sur leurs effets en retour dans la pratique politique. De là peuvent se déduire quelques repères pour analyser aujourd'hui la complémentarité de l'idylle consensuelle et du mélodrame humanitaire, tout comme l'équivalence de la "fin" de la politique et de son "retour" ". (J.R.). (shrink)