Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of Collectivity
In this paper, I start by pointing out that despite their differences, Slavoj Žižek and Karen Barad share an understanding of the notions of relationality, processuality, and immanence as central tenets of materialist philosophy. As I argue, however, it is collectivity that acts in both Žižek’s and...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Radboud University Press
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Technophany |
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| Online Access: | https://technophany.philosophyandtechnology.network/article/view/13879 |
| _version_ | 1797222805232680960 |
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| author | Thomas Telios |
| author_facet | Thomas Telios |
| author_sort | Thomas Telios |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
In this paper, I start by pointing out that despite their differences, Slavoj Žižek and Karen Barad share an understanding of the notions of relationality, processuality, and immanence as central tenets of materialist philosophy. As I argue, however, it is collectivity that acts in both Žižek’s and Barad’s works as a safety valve that lends immanence, processuality, and relationality their materialist quality. To support this argument, I demonstrate that certain forms of collectivity underlie the passage from Werner Heisenberg’s uncertainty to Niels Bohr’s indeterminacy in Barad’s interpretation of Bohr’s ‘philosophy-physics’. I call those forms of collectivity "collectivity as ontological necessity" and "collectivity as methodological necessity" respectively. However, I claim that there is a further form of collectivity, which I call ‘collectivity as inclusive and holistic overdetermination’, that Barad overlooks and that conditions the indeterminability of indeterminacy. As I argue, the latter also has implications for political agency. I conclude by briefly sketching out how these forms of collectivity can determine the production of subjectivity and, as a consequence, shape the subject’s collective action.
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| first_indexed | 2024-04-24T13:27:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b5ccb2e73d1b422bbdedf51c91c480c9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2773-0875 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-24T13:27:10Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Radboud University Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Technophany |
| spelling | doaj.art-b5ccb2e73d1b422bbdedf51c91c480c92024-04-04T09:36:40ZengRadboud University PressTechnophany2773-08752023-08-012110.54195/technophany.13879Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of CollectivityThomas Telios0University of St. Gallen In this paper, I start by pointing out that despite their differences, Slavoj Žižek and Karen Barad share an understanding of the notions of relationality, processuality, and immanence as central tenets of materialist philosophy. As I argue, however, it is collectivity that acts in both Žižek’s and Barad’s works as a safety valve that lends immanence, processuality, and relationality their materialist quality. To support this argument, I demonstrate that certain forms of collectivity underlie the passage from Werner Heisenberg’s uncertainty to Niels Bohr’s indeterminacy in Barad’s interpretation of Bohr’s ‘philosophy-physics’. I call those forms of collectivity "collectivity as ontological necessity" and "collectivity as methodological necessity" respectively. However, I claim that there is a further form of collectivity, which I call ‘collectivity as inclusive and holistic overdetermination’, that Barad overlooks and that conditions the indeterminability of indeterminacy. As I argue, the latter also has implications for political agency. I conclude by briefly sketching out how these forms of collectivity can determine the production of subjectivity and, as a consequence, shape the subject’s collective action. https://technophany.philosophyandtechnology.network/article/view/13879New MaterialismsFeminismKaren BaradCollective AgencyCollective ActionsSocial and Political Philosophy |
| spellingShingle | Thomas Telios Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of Collectivity Technophany New Materialisms Feminism Karen Barad Collective Agency Collective Actions Social and Political Philosophy |
| title | Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of Collectivity |
| title_full | Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of Collectivity |
| title_fullStr | Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of Collectivity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of Collectivity |
| title_short | Karen Barad and the Unresolved Challenge of Collectivity |
| title_sort | karen barad and the unresolved challenge of collectivity |
| topic | New Materialisms Feminism Karen Barad Collective Agency Collective Actions Social and Political Philosophy |
| url | https://technophany.philosophyandtechnology.network/article/view/13879 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT thomastelios karenbaradandtheunresolvedchallengeofcollectivity |