Following Laclau’s Theoretical Development: the Dissolution of Two Essentialist Remnants and the Populist Turn in Ernesto Laclau’s Political Theory^*

Seguindo o Desenvolvimento Teórico de Laclau: a Dissolução de Dois Remanescentes Essencialistas e a Virada Populista na Teoria Política de Ernesto Laclau

Suivant le Développement Théorique de Laclau : la Dissolution de Deux Restes Essentialistes et le Virage Populiste dans la Théorie Politique d’Ernesto Laclau

Siguiendo el Desarrollo Teórico de Laclau: la Disolución de Dos Remanentes Esencialistas y el Giro Populista en la Teoría Política de Ernesto Laclau

Abstract

This paper traces the theoretical development in the political theory of Ernesto Laclau. The guiding thread of our analysis in his Post-Marxist writings is his process of correcting what we will identify as two essentialist remnants present in “Hegemony and Socialist Strategy”. These remnants, concentrated on his considerations about advanced industrial societies and the democratic revolution, are undone in the shift towards populism. This results in an increased argumentative coherence and the abandonment of the belief in advanced industrial societies as the privileged space for the construction of radical democracies. The conclusions are mobilized to resolve a theoretical deadlock that exists between the author’s concepts and their operationalization for research purposes in the current academic debate on populism.

Keywords
Ernesto Laclau; Radical Democracy; Populism; Discourse Theory; Post-Marxism