The Power of Affects in Democratic Politics

Manuel Puig’s ‘Kiss of the Spider Woman’ and the affective turn in democratic theory

The so-called “affective turn” in political theory has recently propelled several scholars to cast aspersions on the deliberative model of democracy. [i] By affirming that democracy should be conceived solely as an exchange of arguments between “reasonable” persons guided by the ideal of “impartiality,” deliberative theorists such as Habermas and Rawls, it ...
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The Power of Affects in Democratic Politics

Brazil, June 2013, Act II

What happened in June 2013 and what will happen in June 2014

Now that 2013 is over, it seems safe to say that the major event last year in Brazil was the series of demonstrations that took place all over the country in June. What triggered the protests was a small rise in the cost of public transportation. On June 1st, fares ...

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Brazil, June 2013, Act II