Mikrophysik des Widerstands

Alexander Kluges politische Philosophie der Gefühle

Abstract

This article deals with Alexander Kluge's understanding of feelings as a potentially productive yet oppressed form of political agency. Through an original reading of Marx and Freud Kluge develops a conception of Antagonistic Realism in which feelings appear as part of a rich aggregation of obstinate subjective capacities directed against the maintenance of the status quo. In my paper, I examine the broader societal-theoretical framework that guides Kluge's investigation, his idea of an anti-realism of feelings, as well as his reflections on their ideological engagement and their relationship to the political. Moreover, my article is an attempt to introduce Kluge's stimulating thought to discourses of critical social philosophy and political theory where it has hitherto been largely overlooked.