Politics of Vulnerability: The Body and Social Struggles in Contemporary Social Theory
Abstract
The concept of vulnerability occupies an important place within different debates in social sciences and public policy-making agendas. This essay develops an analysis of the political significance of the concept, considering the main risks and ambivalences identified in contemporary literature. To revolve around this problem, the reflections of two authors pivotal for contemporary social theory are discussed, namely, Judith Butler and her critique of power and Axel Honneth’s theory of recognition. These authors delve into the problem of body’s vulnerability and its political significance. It is shown here that both approximations allow us interprete the body’s vulnerability as a social phenomena whose meaning is impossible to isolate in its historical and political conjunctures, and also serves in terms of affective basis for the emergence of struggles for recognition. Finally, similarities and differences among these two approaches are highlighted along with their relevance in contemporary debates on the meaning of a ‘politics of vulnerability’.Keywords
Vulnerability, Body, Social Struggles, Social TheoryReferences
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