Reclaiming the End(s) of Politics: Considerations on the Possibility of a Renewed Agonistic Understanding of the Post-Political

Abstract

This thesis seeks to combine two concepts that are generally considered to be antithetical: agonistic democracy and the post-political. The starting place for the thesis is Chantal Mouffe`s understanding of the political, an account that links the construction of political identities, politics and radical democracy. Suggesting that Mouffe`s treatment offers a fertile ground for thinking about the future of democracy, this thesis develops a political approach where the post-political is placed at the forefront of democratic efforts, with the hope that it will counteract the interconnected problems of the securitization of politics and the devaluation of pluralism that plagues Mouffe`s political thought. Unearthing the conceptual connections between Alexandre Kojeve`s understanding of political subject formation and Mouffe`s empty signifier, this thesis investigates the possibility of articulating an understanding of the concept of the post-political that does not result in a totalitarian utopia as the Mouffean critique of the concept suggests.