Jacques Bidet examines the dynamics of political parties, movements, and uprisings as expressions of popular governance. His analysis delves into the capacity of common people to engage in political organization, making it a significant read for both Marxist students and those interested in broader political theories and actions. The exploration of these themes highlights the intersection of social theory and practical politics.
Marx und Foucault - oft scheinen sie unversöhnlich nebeneinanderzustehen, markieren bestimmte Teile der Linken, die sich politisch voneinander abgrenzen. Jacques Bidet bringt die Werke dieser beiden mächtigen Denker zusammen und bietet eine radikale Synthese der marxschen und foucaultschen Theorie. Foucault mit Marx zu lesen, wozu uns Bidet einlädt, ermöglicht es, ihre Komplementarität zu erkennen und Berührungspunkte zu identifzieren. Dem Althusser-Schüler geht es darum, Foucault bei Aspekten der Ausbeutung zu folgen, die der Marxismus nicht erforscht hat, und sein Werk in einer globalen Perspektive neu zu schreiben, die die von Marx war. Bidet entwickelt ausgehend von seiner »Kapital«-Lektüre eine Theorie der Moderne, die Marx’ Analyse der ökonomischen Verhältnisse durch eine Explikation der politischen Dimension der »Organisation« zu ergänzen versucht.
With this timely commitment, Jacques Bidet unites the theories of arguably the world's two greatest emancipatory political thinkers. In this far-reaching and decisive text, Bidet examines Marxian and Foucauldian criticisms of capitalist modernity. For Marx, the intersection between capital and the market is crucial, while for Foucault, the organizational aspects of capital are what really matter. According to Marx, the ruling class is identified with property; with Foucault, it is the managers who hold power and knowledge that rule. Bidet identifies these two sides of capitalist modernity as 'market' and 'organization', showing that each leads to specific forms of social conflict; against exploitation and austerity, over wages and pensions on the one hand, and against forms of 'medical' and work-based discipline, control of bodies and prisons on the other. Bidet's impetus and clarity however serve a greater purpose: uniting two souls of critical social theory, in order to overcome what has become an age-long separation between the 'old left' and the 'new social movements'.