Heterogeneity of political discourse: three main formations

Abstract

Vіncent Descombes’ conception of political rationality is subjected to analysis and critical revision in the paper. Four methodological restrictions of Descombes’ position have been distinguished: 1) subjectivization of political judgment; 2) reduction of political discourse to judgment format; 3) unaccount of supra-political nature of great social utopias (nazism, communism, liberalism); 4) idea of homogeneity of political discourse. As an antithesis, the author proposes and upholds the conception of heterogeneity of political discourse, in which he distinguishes three essentially different sense formations: theoretical, practical, and event discourses. He also point out their basic forms which are the theory, program, and cluster, respectively.