Michel Foucault, Politics As War (1976)

Question 1

Juridical Notion of Sovereignty (that F says should be absolute)

Answer 1

Juridical notion of sovereignty is the notion that power is monarchical, and the sovereign is all powerful

• “monarchic” model of power
• power as relations of force

F Says this model doesn’t work anymore.
He wants to replace it with
Power today is exercised as different relations of force.

-war as model of power relations
(All power relations can be seen in terms of war)
Carl Von Clausewitz (1832)

Question 2

Clausewitz Says:

Foucault Says:

Answer 2

C: War is a continuation of politics

F: Politics is a continuation of war
“War continues to rage within the mechanisms of power” War is happening at the sub lvl all the time.

Question 3

Implications:

Answer 3

Truth is a weapon in battle

Strategic vs. Communicative action

Mythical nature of war discourse

Question 4

F says war is The “cipher of peace”

Answer 4

A cipher is a code. War is the cipher of peace because we have to decrypt what is going on to see the war going on.

We will continue to re-encounter war even when we look at politics during times of peace.

Question 5

Strategic Vs. Communicative action

Answer 5

Strategic: cant have the same thing and you are saying what you are saying to WIN

Communicative: finding the truth

Question 6

Mythical nature of war discourse

Answer 6

Brings back the details of the past and takes the ideas and chanel’s feelings against the past events into current ones

The memory of historical struggles as mythology rather then an exorcise of truth telling.

Ex. SH is the reincarnation of Hitler