Wednesday, 3 February 2010

Apocalypse Tendency Crisis (on Mute)

With many thanks to all those at Mute, my piece 'Apocalypse, Tendency, Crisis' is now up. It was developed from the HM talk and offers a critique of the 'apocalyptic tone' in thinking on the crisis. Also, with further thanks, it will be appearing in the 'material' issue of Mute in mid-March!
Interestingly I've since found out the beginning of Hardt and Negri's Commonwealth is a critique of such a tone, although more narrowly focused. Reading the extract from the book on the website the, unsurprising, target is actually Agamben. The initial point, which I agree with, is the concentration on 'transcendent' power and violence mystifies power embodied in property and capital. This trend is a moment of apocalypticism, but then I think Hardt and Negri are not immune from a more 'gradualist' apocalypticism in the 'rupture' of the capitalist integument by the multitude.

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