“Ontological predation” and the conjuring of liberal fixations: ruminations on (inter)dependencies and “savage” (dis)possessions

ABSTRACT This essay explores (inter) dependency through the concepts of Claude Lévi-Strauss’s “floating signifiers” and Eduardo Viveiros de Castro’s “ontological predation”, placing them in dialogue with other social theories, such as Fernando Henrique Cardoso’s dependency theory and Comte’s notion of the “Great Fetish.” The text analyzes how these ideas help reflect on the mystification of power and the reproduction of inequality, while also questioning the implications of economic progress that shape global and national dependencies. The essay also challenges liberal notions of freedom and self-determination, proposing a reevaluation of dependency and beliefs about self-determination.