Las Torres de Lucca. International Journal of Political Philosophy

Benjamin Arditi, Is there such a thing as populism? 3 provocations and 5 ½ proposals. Routledge. 2025. Nueva York, Estados Unidos. 221 páginas

Alejandro Moreno Hernández — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Stavrakakis, Yannis. (2024). Populist Discourse–Recasting Populism research. Routledge, 186 pages

Bianca Monteiro — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The review of the book Populist Discourse – Recasting Populism Research, written by Yannis Stavrakakis and launched during the Spring of 2024, provides a comprehensive overview of the arguments raised by the author regarding the recent discussion about populism. Among many qualifications, the book facilitates the debate about populism made by Laclau in On Populist Reason. It shows how it can be applied to research on and about populism to help us have a more rigorous and comprehensive approach to political contexts around the Globe. Stavrakakis continue the critical tradition developed by Laclau and Mouffe, deepening our understanding of populism's discursive dimensions in contemporary politics. In my review, I summarize the book, highlight the positive and negative points of Stavrakakis’ approach, and finalise with a guide to help the reader get the best from the book.

McManus, Matthew (2025). The Political theory of Liberal Socialism. Routledge. 246 páginas

Jonas Casado Etxeberria — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Han, Byung-Chul (2024). El espíritu de la esperanza (Alberto Ciria, Trad.). Herder. 141 páginas

Sabela Martínez González — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Hester, Helen y Srnicek, Nick. (2024). Después del trabajo. Una historia del hogar y la lucha por el tiempo libre (Maximiliano Gonnet, Trad.). Caja Negra Editora, 283 páginas

Clàudia Sánchez Vidal — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Gobetti, Piero; Giaime Pala y Gianluca Scroccu (Eds.) (2024). Sobre liberalismo y antifascismo. Ediciones Akal. 284 páginas

Pablo Redondo Jiménez — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Madorrán, Carmen (2023). Necesidades ante la crisis ecosocial. Pensar la vida buena en el Antropoceno. Plaza y Valdés. 129 páginas

Teresa López Franco , Eduardo Torres Morán — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Sánchez Berrocal, Alejandro (2022). El fantasma de un orden: Crisis, democracia y momento populista. Plaza y Valdés Editores, 2022. 379 páginas

Guillermo Sáez Jiménez-Casquet — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Introducción. Hacia una teoría contemporánea del populismo. Debates y reformulaciones veinte años después de "La razón populista" de Ernesto Laclau

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Esta presentación de dossier expone algunas discusiones en tonro al trabajo de Ernesto Laclau de 2005, a la luz de las críticas que suscitó y de su posible vigencia conceptual y teórica, a veinte años de su publicación. A partir de lo anterior, se consigna el eje estructurador de los artículos y reseñas que componen el presente dossier.

Populism and social struggles. The identity constitution of the travesti/trans collective in Argentina

Fidela Azarian — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

In this paper we analyse the process of identity constitution of the Argentine travesti/trans collective in the framework of the Kirchnerist populist articulation (2003-2015). During this political experience, the sexual diversity movement won laws that were fundamental to its consolidation as a movement. Our argument is that the struggles for equal marriage and gender identity were milestones in this new cycle of struggles for sex-gender equality, and they generated conditions of possibility for the identity constitution of the travesti/trans collective as a national and political subject. In order to understand this process of political identification, we consider that it is important to investigate the new articulation possibilities opened up by the 2001 crisis with other social movements. At the same time, we believe that it is essential to analyse the new situation that began with Kirchnerism, the latter acting as interpellation to the travesti/trans collective because of the discourse of rights. We argue that the language of human rights, reconfigured by Kirchnerist hegemony, enabled the travesti/trans activism to signify the unfair deprivations they have always suffered, and to claim for reparations as a damaged part of the community.

Latin American Populism Between Horizontalism and Verticalism

Cristóbal Sandoval — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Latin American populism is characterized by its heterogeneity. Considering its three major waves and other political discourses defined as populist, there is no doubt that it is a complex phenomenon in the region. This article aims to provide a political theory of populism and analytical tools to problematize discourse theory by characterizing Latin American populism considering the concepts of autonomy and hegemony. Thus, from a critical analysis of Ernesto Laclau’s theory of populism, considering also plebeian republicanism, performative theory, and the post-hegemony approach, the article proposes an analytical axis between verticality and horizontality to characterize the three major waves and other examples of populist phenomena in the region. In this way, I recognize a radical democratic creative tension between, on the one side, local mobilizations and horizontal expansion of social demands, and, on the other side, populist discourses that emphasize verticality in the figure of the leader, as well as a variety of hybrid forms.

Naming the people: an analysis of the appropriation of Kripke's theses by Laclau

Agustina Victoria Arrigorria — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article problematizes Laclau’s appropriation of Kripke’s philosophy of language as a key aspect of naming in the constitution of political subjectivity and the formation of populist theory. It offers a critical assessment of Laclau’s adoption of Saul Kripke’s thesis on rigid designators, structured around three main axes: 1) an exposition of the theoretical framework developed by Laclau; 2) an introduction to Kripkean anti-descriptivism and its implications concerning essence, necessity, and causality; and 3) an analysis of how Kripke’s concepts are incorporated into Laclau’s theoretical architecture. The article concludes that the importation of the thesis of rigid designators is ultimately at odds with Laclau’s own theoretical commitments and proposes an anti-deterministic strategy for rethinking the act of naming.

Populism, antagonism and institutions: militant readings of Laclau's work from Latin America

Erick Israel Sepúlveda Murillo — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article analyzes the critiques of the political and institutional deficits within Ernesto Laclau's populism theory. These critiques argue that Laclau reduces populism to a moment of rupture, neglecting its institutional dimension. The paper focuses on how Latin American populist experiences highlight theoretical deficiencies and provide corrective proposals. Through the “militant readings” of Paula Biglieri, Luciana Cadahia, and Damián Selci, the text explores solutions that integrate theory and political practice. In Seven Essays on Populism, Biglieri and Cadahia propose institutional politicization, while Selci addresses the internalization of antagonism through the figure of the militant. The article reconstructs the problem of populism and institutions, presents these theoretical solutions, and concludes with a definition of militant reading.

Back to the future: towards a materialist theory of populism

Luca Zaidan — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article proposes a critical review of the theory of populism developed in On Populist Reason, based on a discussion of two of its main problems: its formalist ahistoricism and its normative deficit, biases that prevent both the effective knowledge of populist formations as well as the theoretical precision of the political and ideology. We will argue that these are two intimately related problems that depend on the Post-Marxist theoretical problematic Ernesto Laclau has adhered to since the early 1980s. We will then analyse the arguments deployed in two of the essays compiled in the 1978 book Politics and Ideology in Marxist Theory. There, Laclau conducts his enquiry into populism and political ideologies from a very different, Marxist-Althusserian problematic. We will proceed to establish its status as a structure of thought that enables a field of enquiry that makes possible the conceptual specification of populism insofar as it inscribes it in a materialist theory of ideology.

Towards a psychoanalytic theory of populist mobilization: reflecting on Laclau’s engagement with social psychology and the theory of crowds

Samuele Mazzolini, Paolo Gerbaudo — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

An overlooked aspect of Ernesto Laclau’s theory of populism is his discussion of social psychology. In the opening chapters of On Populist Reason, Laclau engages with classic contributions to social psychology, such as Gustave Le Bon’s and William McDougall’s work on crowds and Freud’s reflections on group psychology. Reconstructing this engagement is essential for a deeper understanding of Laclau’s “mature” conception of populism and for addressing its limitations. From an ethical perspective, Laclau’s engagement with social psychology provides a means to challenge the “denigration of the masses” that informed early studies of crowds and persists in contemporary critiques of populism. At the same time, these debates lay the groundwork for what may be described as a “psychoanalytic theory of populist mobilization” informed by Freud’s ideas on identification in group psychology, where the leader serves as a focal point for an otherwise dispersed collective. Incorporating this psychoanalytic dimension offers a more solid grounding for Laclau’s rather abstract theory, and a way to develop a more nuanced understanding of the internal dynamics of populist movements and their different outcomes.

The problem of the masses in the Political Philosophy of Ernesto Laclau and León Rozitchner

Joaquín Alfieri — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This work is intended to recover, compare and analyze the continuities and ruptures between the works of Ernesto Laclau and León Rozitchner. In particular, I will focus on the unique reinterpretation developed by both authors regarding Freudian psychoanalysis and the analysis of collective formation developed in one of the classics texts of the discipline: Psychology of the masses and analysis of the self (1921). I will try to highlight the differences present in the conceptual reappropriation developed by each author around Freud’s work, finally offering a critical balance that allows us to highlight the weaknesses and strengths of each approach, with the aim of extracting from this archive a series of fundamental conceptual inputs for a reflection on politics from philosophical perspective.

The market as a process of social disintegration: Polanyi’s critique of the market society

César Ruiz Sanjuán — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

In this paper we consider Polanyi’s conception of market society and the splitting of the economic and political spheres that its implementation requires, as well as his analysis of the social disruption that this creates and the processes of transformation that seek to contain it. From here, we approach Polanyi’s understanding of fascism as an internal drift of market society, which maintains capitalism at the cost of abolishing all democratic institutions. Finally, we outline Polanyi’s functional socialism as a way of overcoming free market capitalism by extending democracy from politics to economics.

“A great desire to dominate”. Machiavelli and the greats

Miguel Fernández de la Peña — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

After decades hegemonized by the Machiavelli of republicanism, many specialists have proposed a radical-popular interpretation of his thought. Accepting this reading requires a questioning of the way in which the role of the great has traditionally been interpreted in his work. In contrast to the nobility imagined by the humanists, which seemed to function as the guarantor of moderate republican order, Machiavelli understood that the elite was the main source of instability for institutions that had to be protected by the law and by the action of the popular stratum itself.

The pedagogical principles of the Institución Libre de Enseñanza: a valuable contribution to reflect on equality in and through the school today

María del Mar Cuartero Cobo — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Although equality of opportunity is part of the public political culture of Western countries, socioeconomic inequalities continue to grow and the mass democratic school, far from contributing to curb this trend, proves incapable of ensuring equality among children while preserving merit. This paper aims to explore what ideas we can extract from the pedagogical principles of the Institución Libre de Enseñanza, based on the Krausist philosophy, to achieve equality –both gender and socioeconomic– in and through the educational system.

Laclau, The Populist Mind, and Competing Populists Elaborations on Cathexis and Alienation

Anthony Lawrence Borja — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

While acknowledging Laclau's invaluable contributions to understanding populism from a discursive perspective, I will illustrate that his framework holds a latent psycho-political dimension that this essay lifts out and elaborates. Guided by the simple question, what are the characteristics of a populist mind, I will assess this latent dimension via an elaboration of Laclau’s adaptation of cathexis (emotional investment) to the issue of identity formation. Moreover, I will refer to the case of competing populist discourses and leaders as a means of highlighting the importance of a psycho-political approach to populism. Through insights drawn from On Populist Reason (OPR) and The Rhetorical Foundations of Society (RFS), I will bring Laclau’s framework closer to the reality of competing populists by developing the latent psycho-political dimension of his theory on populism. I will illustrate that in the context of constitutive heterogeneity, the formation of a populist identity as the workings of a populist mind, is something affected by other psychological factors surrounding cathexis, the impact of pre-existing identities, and a person’s dis/alienation with political actors and objects. Overall, this study seeks to connect Laclau's framework with contemporary research on populist psychology, contributing to a more comprehensive understanding of populism that links discourse, rhetoric, cognition, emotions, and behavior without rejecting constitutive heterogeneity and contingent hegemonic struggles.

Complexity of key factor interactions in peacebuilding in a post-pandemic world

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The study is framed within the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to comprehend the complexity of interactions among factors influencing peace-building in the face of escalating inequalities and social tensions. The objective was to analyze the intricate interplay between security, culture, inequality, citizen participation, and education in promoting peace. The methodology relied on a qualitative exploratory literature review approach to capture the diversity of perspectives on this underexplored topic. Analysis identified patterns through synthesis and categorization. The results reflect a complex interplay between factors, with security, equity, participation and cultural transformation crucial to peace. Finally, it emphasizes the need for a comprehensive approach to promote peace, whose findings should guide effective strategies in times of uncertainty.

The Case of the Centinel: Utility and Merit in Adam Smith's Theory of Justice

María A. Carrasco, Gonzalo Andrés Vidueira Mociño — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Within the framework of moral sentimentalism, Adam Smith develops a conception of justice that combines the retributive justice of his predecessor, Joseph Butler, with the proto-utilitarian elements of his contemporary, David Hume. Smith blends these two traditions through a compound judgment in which he articulates the resentment caused by the harm done by an equal with the social utility of punishment. By identifying the various components that are coordinated in Smith's judgment of justice (resentment, utility, spontaneous sentimental reaction, judgment of the impartial spectator), the richness and nuance of Smith's moral psychology are verified. This allows us to explain, without contradiction, the case that simpler psychologies cannot justify: the guard condemned for falling asleep on duty.

Antinomianism and new legitimation. Contemporary philosophical interventions on the dyad “messianic life-law” in the messianism of Paul of Tarsus

Juan Matias Zielinski — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article offers a critical interpretation of a central philosophical-political motif within Pauline Messianism: the nexus between the “messianic life” or “post-Christ existence” and the law (nomos). This reconstruction takes cognizance of significant contributions from contemporary philosophical ruminations, including those proposed by Giorgio Agamben and Alain Badiou in the European context, alongside insights from Enrique Dussel and Franz J. Hinkelammert in the Latin American sphere. This scrutiny reveals the concept of “messianism” outlined in the Pauline epistles can be construed either as a philosophical-theological-political validation of radical antinomianism (as articulated by Agamben and Badiou), or as the discursive articulation of a novel criterion for political legitimization (as posited by Dussel and Hinkelammert).

Becoming-minority as antagonist of becoming-black

Luis Ángel Campillos Morón — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Starting from Mbembe's Critique of Black Reason, we take two concepts from Deleuze and Guattari's philosophy (potency and Power) with which to read the problem of racism and other forms of discrimination. By examining the production of slavery, with its three dimensions (corporal, social and symbolic), we will arrive at the becoming-black of the world, a concept proposed by Mbembe to explain the current expansion of that first racism of the African slave trade. Against this becoming-black, we will raise, again from the hand of Deleuze and Guattari, the becoming-minoritarian, with its three attributes (anomaly, nomadism and celebration), in struggle against any form of discrimination.

Institutionalisation of rape: an analysis of its spaces of normalisation

Lorena Santos-de-Torregroza — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article aims to broaden the understanding of rape by analysing different spaces such as war, prison, university campuses, churches, marriage, and the family, where rape is institutionalised as an integral part of their functioning, fulfilling a function or serving a cause, and where the institutionalisation of rape is not as evident at first glance as it is in prostitution or the pornography industry. The concept of spaces of rape does not refer to institutional spaces where rape happens to occur but to a structural reality of these spaces of social life where rape is embedded and normalised in socially accepted practices and justified by the belief systems that define them.

The republican trilemma: a critique of the concept of domination

Gonzalo Fernández Codina — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This text follows the critical perspective on the Republican notion of freedom as non-domination and aims to demonstrate that the most common definitions of this concept encounter the following trilemma: either they fail to provide a clear and precise definition of what qualifies as domination, resulting in the problem of indeterminacy; or they offer a clear and precise definition that leads to implausible consequences, resulting in the problem of excess; or they provide a clear and precise definition without problematic derivatives, but it is almost tautological and morally trivial, resulting in the problem of banality. We conclude that, consequently, the republican notion of freedom must be profoundly revised.

From the rift to the metabolic mismatch: ecological crisis, materialism and philosophy of nature

Juan Diego Pérez Núñez — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

In this article I advocate for the importance of a materialist approach to the discussion of whether there is a radical separation between human beings and nature caused by capitalism. I argue that capitalism establishes a relationship in nature characterized by its singular violence, insofar as it pretends to capture the contingency of natural processes as a function of the abstract temporal logic of capital valorization. First, I discuss Friedrich W. J. Schelling's philosophy of nature, one of the first in modern philosophy to raise the question of the separation between man and nature. Second, I argue how Marx's thought and ecomarxism allow us to locate this problem in the concrete historical conditions of capitalism. Finally, I present a Marxian interpretation centered on the notion of contingency that seeks to offer an alternative in the ecomarxist dispute and to radicalize Schelling's philosophy of nature.

The contradiction between labour and capital as a political antagonism

Christian Fajardo — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This article actualises the Marxist approach to the antagonism between capital and labour. Following an attentive reading of some of his texts –but especially Capital– I suggest the idea that this conflict is not between world conceptions but between material forces and mystified forces. Accordingly, I simply want to suggest that this antagonism involves a class struggle between labour as the insertion of human beings into materiality and capital as an articulation of founding and preserving violences that prevent the emergence of that materiality. I also point out that capitalism in its contemporary form has increasingly intensified its mystifications, transforming its violence into an extreme violence that allows for the valorisation of capital. To support these two hypotheses, the text focuses, first, on the Marxist concept of labour and, second, offers a brief genealogy of violence in capitalism. Finally, it focuses on the relationship between labour and anti-violent strategies.

Mapping Gender within Colonial Difference. Feminization and racism in the Iberian invasion of Abya Yala

Érika Calvo Rivera — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Aníbal Quijano's work marked a turning point in the studies on racism by placing its origins in the Iberian invasion of Abya Yala and conceptualizing it as an abysmal line that divided global society between humans and subhumans. Based on this proposal, various voices within decolonial thought have analyzed how the association of Indigenous peoples with the figures of the idolater and the barbarian played a central role in the denial of their full humanity. This text examines how the representation of the Other-Colonized as effeminate and sodomite also contributed to positioning native communities below the line of Being. It is argued that the feminization of the Indigenous person was one of the mechanisms used by the colonial enterprise to push colonized subjects into the same sub-Being zone that late medieval patriarchy had previously assigned to European women. Thus, this article is part of the tradition of decolonial feminisms with the purpose of contributing to placing gender at the center of the analysis of the construction of colonial difference.