210056 SE BAK9: Political Theories and Research on Theories (2021W)

Resistance has arguably become a central notion through which the dilemmas of contemporary political imagination are expressed. This course will employ the lens of critical political theory broadly construed to explore the main ambiguities and complexities involved in resisting oppression – both historically and as they pertain to current political issues. We will examine the question of the justifiability of violence in the service of freedom and justice, point to the main critiques of violence as a viable resistance strategy, and scrutinize the difficult relationship between liberation from oppressive rule and the founding of political freedom. We will also address the notion of everyday resistance, contest the masculinist myths of heroic resistance and interrogate different articulations of intellectual commitment. Finally, we will critically assess the paradigm of civil disobedience and confront the problem of left melancholia today. We will engage with a range of canonical thinkers coming from Marxist, postcolonial, existential and anarchist perspectives, as well as contemporary feminist, critical race and democratic theorists. The emphasis will rest on critically examining and evaluating their arguments, while also reflecting on how their ideas speak to practical examples of resistance from our past and present. The course is interdisciplinary in scope, drawing on philosophical texts, as well as political, sociological and historical writings.