Foucault's Political Challenge - (International Political Theory) by Henrik Paul Bang (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

This book examines Foucault's political framework for connecting political authority with practices of freedom. It starts from the older Foucault's claim that where there is obedience there cannot be government by truth. Then it shows how this claim runs like a red thread through his entire life project.

Review Quotes

'Henrik Bang brings Foucault centrally into the political realities of contemporary democracy: the corruption of governments by economic power, the decline of popular trust and legitimacy, and the resulting incapacity of democratic states to address and resolve the multiple crises facing planetary survival. He shows how the large scale citizen uprisings in recent times are expressions of Foucault's essential conditions of free expression and resistance to political power. The question at the heart of Foucault's Political Challenge is whether leaders and entrenched power systems can find ways to engage their own people in an ongoing process of critical inquiry and power sharing. This book updates Foucault's life work for our times.' W. Lance Bennett, Professor of Political Science and Ruddick C. Lawrence Professor of Communication, University of Washington, Seattle, USA

'This book offers a speculative, complex, yet optimistic, vision of the political implications of Foucault's work for democracy that stands in contrast to mainstream interpretation. As such it makes a distinctive contribution to contemporary political theory.' Mitchell Dean, Professor of Public Governance, Department of Management, Politics and Philosophy, Copenhagen Business School, Denmark

'Henrik Bang is among our most interesting political thinkers, and this book shows why. It is parrhesia in action: a bold and imaginative plea for rethinking Michel Foucault and taking seriously his thesis that blind obedience is the scourge of democratic politics.' John Keane, Professor of Politics, University of Sydney, Australia

About the Author

Henrik P. Bang is Professor of Governance at the Institute for Governance and Policy Analysis, University of Canberra, Australia. He publishes extensively within the fields of political participation and governance. He is most well-known for his concepts of the everyday maker and culture governance.