Sentimental Empiricism: Politics, Philosophy, and Criticism in Postwar France

Sentimental Empiricism reconsiders the legacy of eighteenth and nineteenth century empiricism and moral sentimentalism for the intellectual formation of postwar French thinkers, who developed a critical philosophy that challenges the metaphysical premise of inherent relations. Panagia explores how these thinkers came to understand an aesthetic of mimesis as a credentialing standard for selection to political participation, making it a defining feature of sentimental empiricist thought.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 02 July 2024
Publisher: Fordham University Press

Sentimental Empiricism reevaluates the impact of eighteenth and nineteenth-century empiricism and moral sentimentalism on the intellectual development of postwar French thinkers whose work gained prominence in Anglophone conversations across the humanities under the guise of French theory. Panagia's book delves into the reception of this literature in the Anglophone academy, highlighting the overlooked connections between church and state relations and educational debates surrounding reading practices, the aesthetics of mimesis, French imperialism, and republican universalism. Through a critical examination of the works of Jean Wahl, Simone de Beauvoir, Gilbert Simondon, Gilles Deleuze, and Michel Foucault, Panagia demonstrates how these thinkers developed a sentimental empiricist critical philosophy that diverged from dialectical critique and challenged the metaphysical premise of inherent relations, particularly as articulated in the tradition of Aristotelian scholasticism. Panagia further explores the political legacy of French theory by examining how these thinkers understood an aesthetic of mimesis as a qualification for political participation. In France, the ability to imitate effectively is a state qualification required for access to elite power, making the political, aesthetic, and philosophical critique of mimesis a defining feature of sentimental empiricist thought. By delving into the historical, intellectual, cultural, and philosophical intricacies of this political aesthetic, Panagia reveals how and why postwar French thinkers turned to a tradition of sentimental empiricism to develop a novel form of criticism that attends to the dispositional powers of domination.

Weight: 476g
Dimension: 154 x 232 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781531506711