Conflict as a Vocation: Carl Schmitt and the Possibility of Politics

Carl Schmitt's critique of liberal pluralism (of individuals and associations) was conducted in the name of a different pluralism, a truer pluralism, according to him, namely, the pluralism of equal and sovereign nation-states. His friend/enemy distinction dictates that conflict is the only leg...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Theory, culture & society culture & society, 2000-12, Vol.17 (6), p.1-32
Main Author: Rasch, William
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Civil society
Conflict
Conflict Theory
Hierarchy
History, theory and methodology
International Conflict
Legitimacy
Luhmann, Niklas
Lyotard, Jean-Francois
Modernity
Pluralism
Political conflicts
Political Philosophy
Political Science Theories
Politics
Postmodernism
Social Conflict
Sociology
Sovereignty
State
Systems Theory
Theory
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Summary:Carl Schmitt's critique of liberal pluralism (of individuals and associations) was conducted in the name of a different pluralism, a truer pluralism, according to him, namely, the pluralism of equal and sovereign nation-states. His friend/enemy distinction dictates that conflict is the only legitimate model for politics, at least on the international level. By translating Schmitt's theory of politics as conflict into terms derived from the work of Lyotard and Luhmann, this article asks whether Schmitt's concept of the political has any relevance for the contemporary world, especially considering that the liberal pluralism of associations (or social systems) seems to have carried the day. Such a transposition requires that the modern, horizontal structure of operationally closed (but internally bifurcated) social systems be thought of as sovereign states fiercely fighting to maintain their autonomy. Thus, the common battle fought by the anti-modernist, Schmitt, the ultra-modernist, Luhmann, and the post-modernist, Lyotard, is the one against de-differentiation and the expansion of a universalist morality and economy.
ISSN:0263-2764
1460-3616
DOI:10.1177/02632760022051473