Thinking hegemony otherwise – an educational critique of Mouffe’s agonism

Bibliographic Data

ID6421874
AuthorsEdda Sant (0000-0002-7907-5907, University of Manchester, corresponding author), Ásgeir Tryggvason (0000-0002-0327-9989, Örebro University)
Year2024
Volume26
Issue2
Pages229-244
Publication date2024-06-18
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueDistinktion Journal of Social Theory (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1600-910X • E-ISSN: 2159-9149
PublisherRoutledge (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/1600910x.2024.2365758
OpenAlexW4399828681
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited27

The question ‘What is to be done?’ underpins Chantal Mouffe’s agonistic theory of democratic politics. Yet, despite this affirmative tone that distinguishes her from other radical theorists, her theory neglects the cultural work required for hegemony-building. This omission has resulted in operational difficulties when agonistic democracy is put into practice. This article shows how academics inspired by Mouffe unintentionally depend on theoretical resources from competing democratic theories. As a result of this, agonistic practices risk to reinforce neo-liberal regimes instead of developing counter-hegemonic alternatives. To meet this challenge, and to expand the scope of Mouffe’s agonism, we draw on educational theory to provide a more developed theorization of the cultural work required for hegemony-building. We propose that only by embracing different conceptualisations of education, we can activate cultural interventions that facilitate counter-hegemonic ventures

Agonism · Epistemology · Hegemony · Political science · Sociology · Critical Theory and Political Philosophy · Global Education and Multiculturalism · Global Educational Policies and Reforms · Law · Philosophy

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