Before the Law
Humans and Other Animals in a Biopolitical Frame
Format:Hardback
Publisher:The University of Chicago Press
Published:26th Mar '13
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
Animal studies and biopolitics are two of the most dynamic areas of interdisciplinary scholarship, but until now, they have had little to say to each other. Bringing these two emergent areas of thought into direct conversation in "Before the Law", Cary Wolfe fosters a new discussion about the status of nonhuman animals and the shared plight of humans and animals under biopolitics. Wolfe argues that the human-animal distinction must be supplemented with the central distinction of biopolitics: the difference between those animals that are members of a community and those that are deemed killable but not murderable. From this understanding, we can begin to make sense of the fact that this distinction prevails within both the human and animal domains and address such difficult issues as why we afford some animals unprecedented levels of care and recognition while subjecting others to unparalleled forms of brutality and exploitation. Engaging with many major figures in biopolitical thought - from Heidegger, Arendt, and Foucault to Agamben, Roberto Esposito, and Derrida - Wolfe explores how biopolitics can help us understand both the ethical and political dimensions of the current questions surrounding the rights of animals.
"Clearly developed and cogently argued, Before the Law puts existing formulations on the defensive while at the same time challenging them to respond to what is in essence a very straightforward but pressing question: Have we really begun to think through what 'animal life' means or to deal with the consequences of such questioning?" (David Wills, University at Albany, SUNY)"
ISBN: 9780226922409
Dimensions: 22mm x 15mm x 2mm
Weight: 340g
152 pages