Sonic Acts 2019: Jodi Dean – Communism or Feudalism?

SONIC ACTS FESTIVAL 2019 – HEREAFTER

Jodi Dean – Communism or Feudalism? – Introduction by Ash Sarkar

23 February – De Brakke Grond, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

In the twentieth century, much of the Left understood society as facing a choice between socialism and barbarism (to use the phrase made famous by Rosa Luxemburg). By the century’s end, some argued that the experiments of state socialism were themselves barbaric. Others pointed out that the reality that unfolded after 1989 proved the truth of the choice: the end of socialism had led to unbearable barbarisms of extreme inequality, militarism and environmental degradation. This presentation by Jodi Dean suggests that the twenty-first century forces us to confront a new choice: communism or feudalism. It presents two speculative futures and suggests the paths leading to each.

Jodi Dean is Professor of Political Science at Hobart and William Smith Colleges in Geneva, New York. She has held the position of Erasmus Professor of the Humanities at University of Rotterdam. Her many books include Democracy and Other Neoliberal Fantasies (2009), The Communist Horizon (2010), Crowds and Party (2016). Her book, Comrade: An Essay on Political Belonging, is forthcoming this year from Verso.

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