Neoconservatism, Neoliberalism, and De-Democratization
Hi, there are two interesting events. One is a smaller discussion/seminar (but looks more interesting) and the other is bigger event at Watson library. Since we spent some time discussing neoliberalism i thought this would be good talk to hear. Both of these are on Monday.
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A Discussion of "American Nightmare: Neoconservatism, Neoliberalism, and De-Democratization" with Wendy Brown.
March 26, 11:00am, 1314 Social Sciences Building
Abstract: Neoliberalism and neoconservatism are two distinct political rationalities in the contemporary United States. They have few overlapping formal characteristics, and even appear contradictory in many respects. Yet they converge not only in the current presidential administration but also in their de- democratizing effects. Their respective devaluation of political liberty, equality, substantive citizenship, and the rule of law in favor of governance according to market criteria on the one side, and valorization of state power for putatively moral ends on the other, undermines both the culture and institutions of constitutional democracy. Above all, the two rationalities work symbiotically to produce a subject relatively indifferent to veracity and accountability in government and to political freedom and equality among the citizenry.
Wendy Brown will be presenting a seminar on her recent piece in Political Theory (Vol. 34, No. 6 (2006)). The seminar will be an opportunity to discuss the themes developed in her paper. The paper is available online through the UMN library website. She also recommended the "prequel" to the Political Theory piece, "Neoliberalism and the End of Democracy," which can be found in Theory and Event (Vol. 7, No. 1 (2003)) or in Edgework, a collection of essays she published in 2005.
"Porous Sovereignty/Walled Democracy"
Monday, March 26th at 3:30. 101 Walter Library. Reception to follow.
Wendy Brown is a Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley. Wendy Brown is a Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Berkeley. She received her Ph.D. in Political Philosophy from Princeton University (1983). Her recent publications include Left Legalism/Left Critique, co-edited with Janet Halley (Duke, 2002), Edgework: Critical Essays in Knowledge and Politics (Princeton, 2005), and Regulating Aversion: Tolerance in the Age of Identity and Empire (forthcoming, Princeton, 2006). Her fields of interest include history of political theory, nineteenth and twentieth century Continental theory, critical theory and cultural theory (including postcolonial, feminist, and critical race theory). Her current research focuses on the relationship of theories of political sovereignty to global capital and other transnational forces.