
Contents
Introduction: Biopolitics and Community in Roberto Esposito
Get access-
Published:November 2012
Cite
Extract
Foucault once said that political theory had still not reckoned with the end of sovereign power. In like fashion, one can say that political theory is only just now starting to confront itself and its languages with the consequences caused by the entrance of biology and biological considerations into questions of government. Roberto Esposito is perhaps the contemporary thinker who has gone furthest in questioning the traditional categories of political thought in light of the emergence of biopolitics. In this accessible collection of essays, he presents his own philosophical enterprise in terms of bridging deconstruction with biopolitics. Esposito is perhaps best known for his project of deconstructing the categories of modern political thought—all of which turn around the idea of immunity—by appealing to the subversive potential of the idea of community. In his recently translated volume Bios: Biopolitics and Philosophy, he embarks on the project of providing an affirmative biopolitics. But what is the connection between the question of biopolitics and the fact of community? How can biopolitics help us identify the limits and possibilities of community? What is the urgency of this question today? In this introduction I shall try to indicate how these essays move from a deconstruction of modernity's individualism toward a new affirmative biopolitics of community. Several commentators have recently argued that Esposito's understanding of biopolitics turns on the relation between philosophy and life, that his treatment of biopolitics and community begins and ends in philosophy. But how does Esposito understand the relation between theory and practice? Part of the answer to this question is found in the way in which Esposito understands the relation of the art of writing to the tasks of philosophical reflection today. I believe that an analysis of the latter will also provide elements to understand the new relation he posits between community and biopolitics that makes up his idea of an affirmative biopolitics.
Sign in
Personal account
- Sign in with email/username & password
- Get email alerts
- Save searches
- Purchase content
- Activate your purchase/trial code
- Add your ORCID iD
Purchase
Our books are available by subscription or purchase to libraries and institutions.
Purchasing informationMonth: | Total Views: |
---|---|
March 2023 | 2 |
April 2023 | 1 |
May 2023 | 2 |
July 2023 | 1 |
August 2023 | 5 |
September 2023 | 1 |
December 2023 | 3 |
February 2024 | 1 |
March 2024 | 12 |
April 2024 | 20 |
July 2024 | 3 |
August 2024 | 5 |
September 2024 | 2 |
October 2024 | 2 |
November 2024 | 3 |
January 2025 | 4 |
February 2025 | 2 |
March 2025 | 16 |
April 2025 | 6 |
Get help with access
Institutional access
Access to content on Oxford Academic is often provided through institutional subscriptions and purchases. If you are a member of an institution with an active account, you may be able to access content in one of the following ways:
IP based access
Typically, access is provided across an institutional network to a range of IP addresses. This authentication occurs automatically, and it is not possible to sign out of an IP authenticated account.
Sign in through your institution
Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. Shibboleth/Open Athens technology is used to provide single sign-on between your institution’s website and Oxford Academic.
If your institution is not listed or you cannot sign in to your institution’s website, please contact your librarian or administrator.
Sign in with a library card
Enter your library card number to sign in. If you cannot sign in, please contact your librarian.
Society Members
Society member access to a journal is achieved in one of the following ways:
Sign in through society site
Many societies offer single sign-on between the society website and Oxford Academic. If you see ‘Sign in through society site’ in the sign in pane within a journal:
If you do not have a society account or have forgotten your username or password, please contact your society.
Sign in using a personal account
Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members. See below.
Personal account
A personal account can be used to get email alerts, save searches, purchase content, and activate subscriptions.
Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members.
Viewing your signed in accounts
Click the account icon in the top right to:
Signed in but can't access content
Oxford Academic is home to a wide variety of products. The institutional subscription may not cover the content that you are trying to access. If you believe you should have access to that content, please contact your librarian.
Institutional account management
For librarians and administrators, your personal account also provides access to institutional account management. Here you will find options to view and activate subscriptions, manage institutional settings and access options, access usage statistics, and more.