| Kommentar |
In this class we will explore the question of critical agency, understood tentatively as the capacity to utter critique/act critically in a way that is taken up as such. In the first part of the class, we aim to get a clearer understanding of what critical agency is, by discussing what the capacity to act critically entails and what it means to say that critique is taken up as critique. In that context we will also discuss who the subject of critical agency is, whether it is individuals, collectives, or both. We will then explore how oppressive social structures, like racism or sexism, inhibit, allow for, or possibly produce critical agency. Finally, we look at the relation between critical agency and social practices, including the role of language in critical agency, how the architecture of spaces shapes critical agency, or how the co-optation of critical practices affects critical agency. Part of this seminar will be a one-day workshop with some of the thinkers whose ideas we will discuss in class, including Alisa Bierria, Sally Haslanger, Quill Kukla and Caleb Ward, which will take place on Friday, June 30. Students are invited to play an active role in this workshop, for instance by preparing a short comment on one of the talks. |
