Naming and Affect. Ontological Function of Ideology in the School of Essex’s Discourse Theory

Abstract

This paper maps the ontological function of affect and performativity as articulated in the School of Essex’s discourse theory, most notably in Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe’s writings. Firstly, it will be demonstrated that isolated agency of ideological performativity, does not involve sufficient power to introduce a coherent ontological consistency of both subject and object. Only the intertwine of libidinal force with naming, as the recent development of the School of Essex theory suggests, provides the sufficient conditions of the possibility of generating solid social ontology.