Reconstruction and Criticism of a Destituent Political Philosophy: Giorgio Agamben

This article aims to undertake a critical analysis of Giorgio Agamben's philosophical project considered as a whole. I argue that Agamben's philosophy displays a self-referential, ahistorical and abstract style, marked by a deep suspicion of institutions. Drawing on recent work by Roberto Esposito and others, I strengthen this interpretation and show how it helps reassess the philosophical stakes of Agamben's project. While looking at how Agamben's political philosophy overlooks historical specificity, relies on essentialist claims, dismisses institutional reform, and proposes contradictory and impractical emancipatory alternatives, I argue that its diagnostic power lies in its affirmationist, impolitical and destituent character.