The double inheritance of the concept of subject in the work of Byung Chul Han

Abstract

In the following work we will make a journey through a set of fundamental works by Byung Chul Han to circumscribe the conception of the subject that allows him to articulate central elements of his political program. In this context, we intend to argue that such a conception is articulated from a triple heritage: Foucault's respective conception, Heidegger's understanding of the ontology of Dasein and the concept of ego from the Cartesian tradition. Due to this confluence of traditions it is possible to identify certain tensions in the development of its political and community perspective due to its articulation on different comprehensive bases. To account for this, first of all, we will point out the main aspects of Heidegger's elaborations around Dasein and the conception of the subject in Foucault's work. Secondly, we will analyze a set of readings and interpretations of Han, within the framework of his elaborations regarding contemporary processes of subjectivation and forms of power. With this we propose a clarification and distinction of the comprehensive frameworks from which Han thematizes the socio-political processes of power and subjectivation, in order to contribute to the comprehensive development of his approach in our time.