Emergency and Exception

[Veranstaltung auf Masterniveau] 

In this seminar we will examine the concepts of "emergency" and "exception" in liberal democracies. Is it permissible for governments to act exceptionally in times of emergency? Is there a tension between the ideal of constitutionalism and the law of necessity? Who decides when it is appropriate to declare a "state of exception," and how does a democracy return to "normality" afterward? Is there a sense in which "states of exception" are not exceptional at all, but a permanent and pervasive feature of political life? Over the course of the semester we will grapple with a variety of ways scholars have attempted to address the challenges of crisis governance and navigate distinction between "norm" and "exception." Readings may be taken from the works of Carl Schmitt, Clinton Rossiter, Giorgio Agamben, Oren Gross, Achille Mbembe, William Scheuerman, Arjen Boin, Nomi Lazar, Bonnie Honig, and others.