(For PhD students, or with teacher’s permission; in English or bi-lingual)

Over the past years, I've offered various courses on the double-bind questions of the politics, aesthetics and ethics in relation to the question of the subject and the historical conjunctures.  Most of the time I also include Chinese/Taiwanese/East Asian contexts so that students can direct their research projects toward the Chinese political thoughts and historical events, such as the enlightenment and the shift of the epistemic paradigm in the late 19th century of the late Qing and the early Republic period, the May Forth Movement, the Cultural Revolution, the Japanese-colonial Taiwan, the martial-law period as well as the cold-war / post-cold-war Taiwan. 

For the semester of Spring 2011, following up the design of my previous courses, I plan to focus on Badiou and Rancière with their interrogations on the radical re-thinking the questions of politics and subject, including the problem of the political subject, ethics, equality, community, communism, multitude, masses and democracy. I want to situate their problematic in the intellectual contexts of the new materialist tradition, along the line of Spinoza, Hegel, Marx, Freud, Heidegger, Lacan, Canguilhem, Foucault, Althusser, Macherey and Balibar. We will see their projects on the logical revolution, or the epistemological revolution, and their intervention on a new science of history.  I also wish to relate to the East Asian discourses on the political events and the contemporary issues so that further reflections on these issues could be developed. I especially want to focus on the contemporary reflections on the Chinese Cultural Revolution, the East Asian conditions, the global revolution and the current political issues that the participants of this class are working on.

http://www.srcs.nctu.edu.tw/joyceliu/mworks/major-works6.htm

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Course Calendar

Week 1 (2/24) Introduction

• a. Badiou, "Politics Unbound", "Politics as a Truth Procedure", Metapolitics. Ed. Verso, 2005. 68-77, 141-152.
• b. Badiou, "Ranciere and the community of Equals", "Ranciere and Apolitics", Metapolitics, Ed. Verso, 2005, tranl. By Jason Berker, 107-123.
• c. Badiou, "The Idea of Communism", The Communist Hypothesis. London & New York: Verso 2010. (L'idee du communisme) de Alain Badiou, Slavoj Zizek, et Collectif. 229-260.
• Cf. Badiou, Žižek and Jenkins on Egypt (See e-Campus course materials)¡XFeel free to add relevant materials and discussions

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Week 3 (3/10) Althusser, Marx, the theory of discourse and materialism ¡V I

• a. Althusser, "Three Notes on the Theory of Discourses" (1966), The Humanist Controversy and Other Writings. Trans. G.M. Goshgarian. Verso,, 2003. 33-84
• b. Althusser, "Contradiction and Overdetermination" (1962), "On the materialist Dialectic: on the unevenness of origins" (1963), For Marx, ed. Verso, 1969, transl. by B. R. Brewster, 89-127, 161-217.
• c. Althusser, "The Epistemological Propositions of Capital", "The Object of Political Economy", "Marx's Critique", "Marx's Immense Theoretical Revolution", Reading Capital (1965). Trans. by Ben Brewster. Verso, 1970. 145- 193.

Week 4 (3/17) Althusser, Marx, the theory of discourse and materialism ¡V II

• a. Althusser, "Philosophy as a Revolutionary Weapon" (1968), Lenin and Philosophy and other essays. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1-9.
• b. Althusser, "The Historical Task of Marxist Philosophy" (1967), The Humanist Controversy and Other Writings. Trans. G.M. Goshgarian. Verso, 2003. 155-220.
• c. Althusser, "The Underground Current of the Materialism of the Encounter" Philosophy of the Encounter: Later Writings, 1978-1987. London, New York: Verso, 2006. 163-207.
• Cf. "Marx in his Limits" (1978), Philosophy of the Encounter: Later Writings, 1978-1987. London, New York: Verso, 2006. 7-162.

Week 5 (3/24) Badiou, Ranciere and Balibar on Althusser

• a. Badiou, "Althusser: Subjectivity without subject", Metapolitics, ed. Verso, 2005, pp. 58-68
• b. Ranciere, "Althusser, Don Quixote, and the Stage of the Text", The Flesh of Words: the Politics of Writing. Atopia, 2004.129-145. (La parole muette: Essai sur les contradictions de la literature)
• c. Baibar, "In Search of the Proletariat: The Notion of Class Politics in Marx", "Politics and Truth: The Vacillation of Ideology, II", Masses, Classes, Ideas: Studies on Politics and Philosophy Before and After Marx. New York & London: 1994. Rouledge, 125-174.
• Cf. Olivier Feltham, "The Althusserian years: Epistemology and the production of change", Alain Badiou: live theory, ed. Continuum, 2008, 1-31.

Week 6 (3/31 or 3/29) Epistemology, the Philosophy of Science and the Materialist Way I: Canguilhem, Foucault

• a. Macherey, "Foucault: Ethics and Subjectivity," "From Canguilhem to Canguilhem by Way of Foucault", Pierre Macherey, In a Materialist Way: Selected Essays. Ed. By Warren Montag. Trans. by Ted Stolze. Verso 1998. 96-115
• b. "Georges Canguilhem's Philosophy of Science: Epistemology and History of Science", Pierre Macherey, In a Materialist Way: Selected Essays. Ed. By Warren Montag. Trans. by Ted Stolze. Verso 1998. 161-188

Week 7 (4/7) Epistemology, the Philosophy of Science and the Materialist Way II: Spinoza, Hegel

• a. Macherey, "The Hegelian Lure: Lacan as Reader of Hegel", Pierre Macherey, In a Materialist Way: Selected Essays. Ed. By Warren Montag. Trans. by Ted Stolze. Verso 1998. 55-76
• b. Macherey, "Spinoza's Philosophical Actuality (Heidegger, Adorno, Foucault)", Pierre Macherey, In a Materialist Way: Selected Essays. Ed. By Warren Montag. Trans. by Ted Stolze. Verso 1998. 125-135
• c. Hegel, Subjective Logic
• d. Hegel, "Preface", "Introduction", "Self-consciousness", "Independence and dependence of self-consciousness: Lordship and Bondage", Phenomenology of mind, trans. A. V. Miller. Oxford University Press, 1977. 104-119
• Cf. Zizek "A spectre is Haunting western Academia", "Passionate (Dis) attachements, Ideological Interpellation", The Ticklish Subject, ed. Verso, 1999. 1-7, 257-

Week 8 (4/14) The Question of Rationality, Logic, Ethics and Equality ¡V I

• a. Badiou, "The Ethic of Truths", "The Problem of Evil", Ethics: An Essay on the Understanding of Evil. Verso, 2001. 40-57, 72-89.
• b. Badiou, "The Event as Trans-Being", "Eight Thesis on the Universal", Theoretical Writings. Trans. by Brassier and Toscano. Continuum, 2004. 97-102, 143-152.
• c. Peter Hallward, "Politics: Equality and justice", Badiou: a subject to truth ed. University of Minnessota Press, 2003. 223-242.

Week 9 (4/21 or 4/18) The Question of Rationality, Logic, Ethics and Equality ¡V II

• a. Ranciere, "The Community of Equals" (1987), On the Shores of Politics. London: Verso, 1995. 63-92. (Aux bords du politique)
• b. Ranciere, "The Distribution of the Sensible: Politics and Aesthetics", The Politics of Aesthetics. Continuum, 2004.12-19. ("Du partage du sensible et des rapport qu'il etablit entre politique et esthetique", Le partage du sensible: esthetique et politique. Ed. La Fabrique, 2000, 12-25)
• c. Ranciere, "Wrong", "The Rationality of Disagreement", Disagreement: Politics and Philosophy. 21-42, 43-60. "le tort", "La raison de la mesentente" La Mesentente: Politique et philosophie, ed. Galilee, 1995. 43-91
• d. Ranciere, "The Ethical Turn of Aesthetics and Politics", Aesthetics and Its Discontents. Polity, 2009. 109-132. ("Le tournant ethique de l'esthetique et de la politique", Malaise dans l'esthetique. Galilee, 2004, 145-173.)
• CF. Todd May. "Jacques Ranciere and the Ethics of Equality", SubStance #113, Vol. 36, no. 2, 2007. 20-36.
• Cf. "La Methode de l'Egalite", in Philosophie Deplacee: Autour de J. Ranciere, (L. Cornu et Patrice Vermeren), ed. Horlieu, 2006,
  
  Week 10 (4/28) The Question of the Subject ¡V I

• a. Badiou, "Subjectivation", Second Manifeste pour la philosophie, ed. Fayard, coll. Ouvertures, 2009. 105-118.
• b. Badiou, "Formal Theory of the Subject (Meta-physics)", Logics of Worlds: Being and Event II. London & New York: Continuum, 2009. 45-78.
• c. Badiou, "Forcing truth and the subject beyond Lacan", Being and Event, ed. By Continuum, 2005, pp. 391-406.
• d. Badiou, "The Place of the subject", "La subjectivization and the subjective Process", Theory of Subject, ed. Continuum, translated by Bruno Bostells, 2009. 1-13, 241-247.

Week 11 (5/5) The Question of the Subject ¡V II

• a. Ranciere, "The People or the Multitudes?" Dissensus: On Politics and Aesthetics. Contiuum 2010, 84-90. ("Peuple ou Multitude?" Et tant pis pour les gens fatigues, 290-300
• b. Ranciere, "Who Is the Subject of the Rights of Man?" Dissensus: On Politics and Aesthetics. Contiuum 2010, 62-75.
• c. Ranciere, "Biopolitics or Politics?" Dissensus: On Politics and Aesthetics. Contiuum 2010, 91-96. ("Biopolitique ou politique?" et tant pis pour les gens fatigues,ed. Amsterdam, 2009, 215-220).
• CF. Ranciere, "La politique n'est chexistensive ni a la vie ni a l'Etat" (The policy is coexistensive neither life nor has the state), Et tant pis pour les gens fatigues, ed. Amsterdam, 2009, 240-254.
• Cf. Ranciere, "Xenophobie et politique", et tant pis pour les gens fatigues,ed. Amsterdam, 2009, 191-206
• Cf. Ranciere, "La communaute comme dissentiment", et tant pis pour les gens fatigues, 313-324

Week 12 (5/12) Communism, Democracy, and Politics ¡V I

• a. Badiou, "A Speculative disquisition on the concept of Democracy", Metapolitics, ed. Verso, 2005, 78-95.
• b. Badiou, "The democratic emblem" (L'embleme democratique), Democracy, in what state?¡]Democratie, dans quel etat?) -- de Giorgio Agamben, Alain Badiou, Daniel Bensaid, et Wendy Brown. French edition. Ed. La Fabrique, 2009, 15-26
• c. Badiou, "The Cultural Revolution: the last revolution?" Polemics. Verso 2006, 291-332.
• d. Badiou, "Philosophy and Politics", Conditions. Continuum, 2008. 147-176.

Week 13 (5/19) Communism, Democracy, and Politics ¡V II

Week 14 (5/26) Concluding forum - Personal Projects with/against Badiou and/or Ranciere ¡V cases in Haiti, Paris, Italy, China, Korea, Taiwan, China, etc.

• CF. Peter Hallward, "Subject and Event", Badiou: a subject to truth, ed. University of Minnessota Press, 2003, 107-152
• CF. Etienne Balibar, "The History of Truth: Alain Badiou in French Philosophy", Think Again: Alain Badiou and the Future of Philosophy. Ed. Peter Hallward. Continuum, 2004. 21-38.
• CF. Ray Brassier, "Nihil Unbound: Remarks on Subtractive Ontology and Thinking Capitalism", Think Again: Alain Badiou and the Future of Philosophy. Ed. Peter Hallward. Continuum, 2004. 50-58.
• CF. Daniel Bensaid, "Alain Badiou and the Miracle of the Event", Think Again: Alain Badiou and the Future of Philosophy. Ed. Peter Hallward. Continuum, 2004. 94-105.
• CF. Alberto Toscano, "Communism as Separation", Think Again: Alain Badiou and the Future of Philosophy. Ed. Peter Hallward. Continuum, 2004. 138-149.
• CF. Bernard Vainqueur, "De quoi sujet est le nom pour A. Badiou? In Alain Badiou : penser le multitude, texts reunis par Raymond Charles, ed. L'Harmttan,2006, pp. ?
• CF. Zachary Frazer, in The praxis of Alain Badiou , ed. ? "The limit of the subject in Badiou's being and Event", pp. 71-102
• CF. Sigi Johkandt, idem, "Giving for to its own existence: anxiety and the subject of truth", pp. 180-210
• CF. S. Zizek, "Political subjectivization and its vissitudes (Badiou, Balibar, Ranciere): Hegemony and it symptom", The Ticklish Subject, ed. Verso, 1999, 171-245.
• CF. Todd May, "Active and passive equality", The political thought of J. Ranciere, Creating Equality, ed. Edinburgh University Press, 2008, 1-38.
• CF. Nina Power, Which Equality? Badiou and Ranciere in Light of Ludwig Feuerbach, parallax, 2009, vol. 15, no. 3, 63¡V80
• CF. Tambakaki, Paulina (2009) 'When Does Politics Happen?', Parallax, 15:3, 102 ¡X 113 „X
• CF. Dean, Jodi (2009) 'Politics without Politics', Parallax, 15:3,20 ¡X 36 „X
• CF. Ferris, David(2009)'Politics after Aesthetics: Disagreeing with Ranciere', Parallax, 15:3, 37 ¡X 49 „X
• CF. Dasgupta, Sudeep(2009)'Conjunctive Times, Disjointed Time: Philosophy between Enigma and Disagreement', Parallax, 15:3, 3 ¡X 19

Week 15 (6/2) Individual conference

Week 16 (6/9) Individual conference

Week 17 (6/16) Individual conference

Week 18 (6/23) No class

Further reference:

1. Ranciere, "Les lecons de Jacques Ranciere: Savoir et Pouvoir apres la Tempete" in Philosophie Deplacee: Autour de J Ranciere, Textes reunis par L. Cornu et P. Vermeren, ed. Horlieu, 2006, 113
2. Ranciere, "Aesthetics, Inaesthetics, Anti-Aesthetics", Think Again: Alain Badiou and the Future of Philosophy. Ed. Peter Hallward. Continuum, 2004. 218-231. ("Esthetique, inestethiqe, antiesthetique" in Alain Badiou, Penser le Multitude, texts reunis par Raymond Charlesed. L'Harmattan, 2002, 447-98)
3. Ranciere, "The End of Politics or the Realist Utopia", On the Shores of Politics. London: Verso, 1995. 5-37. (Aux bords du politique)
4. Ranciere, "The Beginning of Politics", Disagreement: Politics and Philosophy. 1-20. ("Naissance de la Politique", La Mesentente: Politique et philosophie, 19-40.
5. Ranciere, "The Politics of Literature", Dissensus: On Politics and Aesthetics. Contiuum 2010, 152-168. (Polique de la literature, ed. La Fabrique, 2007, "hypotheses", 11-40 )
6. Ranciere, "La politique n'est chexistensive ni a la vie ni a l'Etat" (The policy is coexistensive neither life nor has the state), Et tant pis pour les gens fatigues, ed. Amsterdam, 2009, 240-254.
7. Ranciere, La Lecon d'Althusser, ed. Gallimard, 1974, "Lecon d'ideologie"
8. Peter Hallward, "Introduction: Consequences of Abstraction," Think Again: Alain Badiou and the Future of Philosophy. Ed. Peter Hallward. Continuum, 2004. 1-20.
9. Nina Power, "Toward an Anthropology of Infinitude: Badiou and the Political Subject," The Praxis of Alain Badiou. Ed. Paul Ashton, A.J. Bartlett and Justin Clemens. 2006. 309-338.
10. Peter Hallward, "Politics and Philosophy: An Interview with Alain Badiou", by Peter Hallward, in Ethics: An Essay on the Understanding of Evil. Verso, 2001. 95-144.
11. Badiou, Peut-on Penser la Politique? Ed. Seuil, 1985, "Decomposition", 67-115
12. Badiou, "Philosophy and the 'death of communism" (1998), Infinite Thought: Truth and the Return to Philosophy. Continuum 2003, 126-140.
13. Hegel, Principe de la philosophie du Droit, Additif du paragraphe 228, transl. By R. Derathe
14. Zizek "Fetishism and its vicissitudes: The subject supposed to believe, Interpassvity", The plague of fantasies, ed., 86-126