The paradoxes of the Freedom of Flesh: on the relation between subjectivity and action in Michel Foucault and Michel Henry’s investigation on Christianity

Abstract

Both Michel Foucault and Michel Henry dedicated an important part of their research to studying the Christian account of flesh. Despite having philosophical perspectives utterly different, both Foucault and Henry share significant common points, especially the critique that they make and the alternative that both propose to Phenomenology. How does the analysis of their investigation about flesh shed a new light on the critique that both Foucault and Henry make to Phenomenology’s account of subjectivity? How does such a “dialogue” between them about flesh show a new understanding of freedom, which is a crucial topic of Foucault and Henry’s reflection on flesh? By answering these questions, the article reveals the paradoxes of action, understood as the practice of freedom carried out by the subject, that challenges Foucault and Henry’s reflection on flesh and underlines the relevance of the reflection on action in contemporary philosophy.