A Critique of Agential Realism

Agential realism is a highly cited philosophy proposed by Karen Barad (2007) that provides an iconoclastic approach to understanding ontology, epistemology, and ethics as intertwined, entangled, mutually implicated, co-constituted fields. Her “ethico-onto-epistem-ology” is based on work done in quantum mechanics, science and technology studies, and feminist studies. It has motivated some scholars in different fields to significantly reconsider the ways they conceive the domains they study and the approaches they use to conduct their empirical work. In the information systems field, it has inspired work on sociomateriality. Because agential realism is a complex, nuanced philosophy, however, its strengths and weaknesses are still being teased out and contested. In this vein, I critique some major features of agential realism that I consider problematic. I examine and appraise Barad’s narratives about representationalism, reflexivity, agency, entanglement, phenomena, intra-actions, discursive practices, agential cuts, apparatuses, matter, posthumanism, objectivity and measurement, and space and time. In part, I consider whether these narratives are internally consistent. I also canvass whether the theory that underlies agential realism applies to macro-objects (such as social systems) and, if so, whether any practical implications arise.