Abstract:
This essay discusses the evolution of state theory from G. W. F. Hegel to Gilles Deleuze, with a focus on the ways in which the state has been theorized as a mechanism of egalitarian social change. Following Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri's empire thesis, it raises the question of whether institutional mediations, like states and trade unions, have exhausted their potential to serve as agents of social change. In answering this question, the essay points to contemporary movement activity and recent developments in Latin American politics in which states have played a major role in enacting change.
Theories of the state have undergone immense transformation since the founding of Social Text in 1979. While much of existing scholarship in political science and international relations remains restricted to the political sphere, contemporary critical theory has concerned itself with the state's cultural and ideological manifestations and role in the development of a libratory politics. Some of the most important theoretical developments in this area, and debates over the state's transformative potential, have appeared in the pages of this journal.
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