Strategy without a Strategiser

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

1 Citation (SciVal)
31 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

The key claims of left accelerationism are grounded upon a network of concepts. Crucial here have been the notions of hegemony (the genesis of which exists within the work of Antonio Gramsci); strategy (a notably polyvalent concept); and rationality (which has strong roots in the contemporary analytic tradition but which has been widely critiqued within the Continental one). Though the concepts of hegemony–strategy and strategy–rationality have received wide treatment, the hegemony and rationality pair has received minimal attention. Yet to render the core arguments of left accelerationism explicable requires that these three ideas are placed in some concrete relation. To put the issue another way: what is the relationship between power (hegemony) and rationality? This article will argue that many of the critiques which the left accelerationist position has received are bound up in misunderstanding this relationship. To remedy such misnomers, we will argue that it is a more sophisticated understanding of strategy that can help bridge these two domains. This leads us to delineate a form of strategy-without-a-strategiser, a distributed and emergent strategic orientation which mediates the power/rationality binary.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)14-25
Number of pages12
JournalAngelaki
Volume24
Issue number1
Early online date12 Feb 2019
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 12 Feb 2019

Keywords

  • accelerationism
  • complexity
  • hegemony
  • rationality
  • strategy

Cite this