| Publication |
2013.
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| Summary/Abstract |
Some critical international relations scholars have adopted theories of governmentality both as a heuristic framework for exploring modalities and functions of power and as a descriptive tool to explore the oppressive effects of global liberalism. I argue that, as a descriptive tool, much governmentality literature remains rooted in the same substantialist ontology and epistemology as the liberal discourses it seeks to criticize. This ontological orientation especially has a bearing on conceptualizations of political agency, which remain confined to the liberal struggle of power and freedom. I suggest that reimagining political agency calls for a reorganization of the ontological and epistemological framework of international relations in non-substantialist ways. The analysis maps non-substantialist positions across disciplinary lines. By treating power and subjects as deeply imbricated, non-substantialist ontologies examine political engagements as processes of hybridization aimed at producing practical effects in specific contexts.
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