Date: Fri, 07 Apr 2000 09:10:01 +0200
Subject: Re: biopower: Agamben/Foucault.




Catherine Mills wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I have recently been doing some work on biopower, particularly using
> Giorgio Agamben's book called 'Homo Sacer: Sovereign Power and Bare Life'.
> In the introduction to this book, Agamben claims that Foucault
> overemphasises the historical distinction between sovereignty and
> biopolitics and goes on to argue that 'the inclusion of bare life
> [Aristotle's zoe] constitutes the original - if concealed - nucleus of
> sovereign power...the production of the biopolitical body is the original
> activity of sovereign power' (p6).

Could you explain more exact whast he means by "bare life" and why the book has
the title
homo sacer? I could be interested to look at the book.

Also:
Do Agamben draw a link between modern constructivism and biopolitics?


>  I would be interested to know what
> other people who have read this book think of Agamben's critique of
> Foucault and of his own arguments regarding biopower, especially around the
> generalisation of the exception in modern politics.

Thanks  Dag Helge M.