Before the Law

Humans and Other Animals in a Biopolitical Frame

Nonfiction, Science & Nature, Nature, Animals, Animals Rights, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Political, Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism
Cover of the book Before the Law by Cary Wolfe, University of Chicago Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Cary Wolfe ISBN: 9780226922423
Publisher: University of Chicago Press Publication: December 10, 2012
Imprint: University of Chicago Press Language: English
Author: Cary Wolfe
ISBN: 9780226922423
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Publication: December 10, 2012
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Language: English

Animal studies and biopolitics are two of the most dynamic areas of interdisciplinary scholarship, but until now, they have had little to say to each other. Bringing these two emergent areas of thought into direct conversation in Before the Law, Cary Wolfe fosters a new discussion about the status of nonhuman animals and the shared plight of humans and animals under biopolitics.

 

Wolfe argues that the human­­­-animal distinction must be supplemented with the central distinction of biopolitics: the difference between those animals that are members of a community and those that are deemed killable but not murderable. From this understanding, we can begin to make sense of the fact that this distinction prevails within both the human and animal domains and address such difficult issues as why we afford some animals unprecedented levels of care and recognition while subjecting others to unparalleled forms of brutality and exploitation. Engaging with many major figures in biopolitical thought—from Heidegger, Arendt, and Foucault to Agamben, Esposito, and Derrida—Wolfe explores how biopolitics can help us understand both the ethical and political dimensions of the current questions surrounding the rights of animals.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Animal studies and biopolitics are two of the most dynamic areas of interdisciplinary scholarship, but until now, they have had little to say to each other. Bringing these two emergent areas of thought into direct conversation in Before the Law, Cary Wolfe fosters a new discussion about the status of nonhuman animals and the shared plight of humans and animals under biopolitics.

 

Wolfe argues that the human­­­-animal distinction must be supplemented with the central distinction of biopolitics: the difference between those animals that are members of a community and those that are deemed killable but not murderable. From this understanding, we can begin to make sense of the fact that this distinction prevails within both the human and animal domains and address such difficult issues as why we afford some animals unprecedented levels of care and recognition while subjecting others to unparalleled forms of brutality and exploitation. Engaging with many major figures in biopolitical thought—from Heidegger, Arendt, and Foucault to Agamben, Esposito, and Derrida—Wolfe explores how biopolitics can help us understand both the ethical and political dimensions of the current questions surrounding the rights of animals.

More books from University of Chicago Press

Cover of the book In Sorcery's Shadow by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book The Black Image in the White Mind by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book For Dignity, Justice, and Revolution by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book The Jack-Roller by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book Urban Appetites by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book The Cabinet of Linguistic Curiosities by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book Exchange Is Not Robbery by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book A Cultural History of Heredity by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book Confronting Torture by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book "Do You Know...?" by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book "The Voice of Egypt" by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book Renaissance Self-Fashioning by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes, Second Edition by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book Life Breaks In by Cary Wolfe
Cover of the book A Final Story by Cary Wolfe
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy