University of London London School of Economics and Political Science THE STATE IN THE INTERNATIONAL THEORY OF CARL SCHMITT: MEANING AND FAILURE OF AN ORDERING PRINCIPLE William Alexander Hooker PhD 2008 1 UMI Number: U506676 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Dissertation Publishing UMI U506676 Published by ProQuest LLC 2014. Copyright in the Dissertation held by the Author. Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest LLC 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 ABSTRACT Carl Schmitt’s idiosyncratic account of the history of the state and international relations is fundamental to an understanding of his role as a theorist of the international. The thesis argues that Schmitt’s pessimism about the prospects for the modem state derives from his historical method. Combining theologically and geopolitically determinist elements, Schmitt creates varying historical narratives which together attribute the limitations of the state form to its own genesis. Schmitt creates a multi-layered historical account in which broadly domestic and international factors combine to erode the possibility of authentic political separation, and ‘hasten’ a broad universalism. Theological in origin, Schmitt deploys the opposing typologies of ‘restraint’ and ‘hastening’ as both historical descriptions, and as yardsticks by which to measure the efficacy of political actors. In the context of contemporary events, Schmitt eventually concludes that the history of the state has entered a period of terminal acceleration, and can no longer be sustained via the usual political methods. Having depicted this historical perspective, the thesis goes on to consider the ramifications of these conclusions for Schmitt’s continued relevance as a theorist of the international. Consideration is given to the two devices Schmitt deploys in an attempt to uncover a new language for world politics - the Grossraum and the Partisan. The thesis argues that neither concept lives up to its claim to transcend or reform Schmitt’s pessimistic history of the state. They are both derivative concepts that collapse back into Schmitt’s wider nostalgia for the European state form. On Schmitt’s own terms, they do not offer a conceptual point of departure for a raw new account of inter-genus politics. Rejecting the notion of ‘Schmittianism’ as a coherent and programmatic position in IR, the thesis concludes that Schmitt’s continuing value lies in his provocative historical critique, rather than his conceptual innovation. DECLARATION I certify that the thesis presented by me in 2008 for examination for the PhD degree of the University of London is solely my own work other than where I have clearly indicated that it is the work of others, and that the extent of any work carried out jointly by myself and any other person is clearly identified in it. I declare that this thesis consists of 96,729 words. Signed__________________________________ Date___________________ The copyright of this thesis rests with the author. Quotation from it is permitted, provided that full acknowledgement is made. This thesis may not be reproduced without prior written consent of the author. 2 CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION 11 2. SCHMITT’S ‘INTERNATIONAL THOUGHT’ 21 The Political States and Their System Nomos The Katechon Style and Polemic Schmitt in IR i) Schmitt and the Realists ii) Schmitt and the Right iii) Schmitt and the Left iv) Kosovo v) Schmitt and the Postmodernists vi) Schmitt and the Liberal Challenge 3. UNRAVELLING SOVEREIGNTY 59 The Leviathan in the State Theory of Thomas Hobbes Hobbes in Schmitt's Political Eschatology Eschatology and Anti-Semitism The Tripartite Structure of the State Political Design & Political Revelation Hobbes as an International Theorist 4. HISTORIES OF SPACE 98 Nomos & Land Pre-modem Orders Spatial Revolution The Element of Land The Element of Sea The Elemental Decision in Favour of the Sea The Sea & 'Emptiness' Geopolitics & History 3 5. ACCELERATION & RESTRAINT 134 Historical Order & 'Slow Time' Modem Epochs The Age of Technology World War & Acceleration Hastener Despite Himself? 6. GROBRAUM 159 Schmitt's Path into International Law Volkerrechtliche Grofiraumordnung The 'PoliticalIdea' A New Definition of Space The Grofiraum after 1945 Grofiraum as Latent Possibility 7. PARTISAN 192 Four Criteria o f Partisanship Theorie des Partisanen and The Concept o f the Political The Vulnerbility of the Partisan - Three Points of Weakness i) Philosophical Abstraction ii) Tellurism and Technology iii) The 'interessierten Dritte' Partisans and Terrorists i) Terrorists and Freedom Fighters ii) The Response of States to the Irregular iii) 'Saving the Concepts' Partisans, the State, and Order 8. CONCLUSION 234 4 PREFACE My first exposure to Carl Schmitt was in 2001-2002 when I had the good fortune to study the History of Political Thought from 1890 to the Present under the supervision of Martin Riihl, then of Queen's College, Cambridge. In this setting, my first reading of Schmitt was in the context of manifold other thinkers (including Nietzsche, Weber, Sorel, Franz Neumann, Adorno and Horkheimer), each of whom was grappling in their varying ways with the political problems of late modernity. Schmitt stood out from this field both for his polemical force, and for his profound neglect among English speaking scholars. At this time, none of Schmitt's post-war works were available in English translation, and except for the occasional efforts of Gary Ulmen as editor of Telos, there was virtually no English language scholarship on The Nomos of the Earth. The 'gap in the market' for serious study of Schmitt as an international thinker seemed self-evident. In 2003 I produced a Masters thesis entitled Justus Hostis: Carl Schmitt on Public Enmity. I am grateful to Margot Light for her supervision, her sound guidance on how to conduct research on "controversial" subjects, and for her heartfelt and much appreciated encouragement ever since. Martin Riihl, Jan-Wemer Muller and Joe Devanny were also of great assistance at this stage in helping to clarify my ideas on Schmitt's international thought. I am also grateful to the anonymous examiners at the LSE whose encouraging remarks Margot enthusiastically relayed. Such positive feedback doubtless stiffened my resolve to pursue the present project. For the past three years the LSE has provided a stimulating and supportive environment for the pursuit of what has been a somewhat solitary research agenda. Chris Brown has been the very model of a PhD supervisor. Chris' support comes not only in the form of constructive remarks and sage tactical advice, but most agreeably in the form of food, drink and great fun. I am sure he would accept of himself the description "interested in Schmitt, but certainly not Schmittian," making him an informed and sympathetic reader of my work. I hope that he has now overcome early misgivings that he was somehow complicit in siring an underground "Schmitt School” at the heart of the LSE. Many others at the LSE have also helped to shape this thesis through their generous suggestions and criticism. Each year I have been fortunate to attend constructive and thought- 5 provoking research panels, and I am especially grateful to Barry Buzan, Spyros Economides and Peter Wilson for their perceptive reflections on various parts of the thesis. Margot Light and Mick Cox have been constant in their enthusiasm, and an excellent source of advice on the pragmatic demands of completing a PhD thesis. I am also grateful to Douglas Bulloch, Kenny Chitranukroh, Simon Curtis, Phillipe Fournier, Rune Henriksen, Stefanie Ortmann, Serena Sharma, Ewan Stein and Louisa Sunderman for their various remarks and suggestions. I have also been lucky to enjoy continued advice and feedback from my undergraduate teachers, most especially Tim Harper. And all this despite "absconding to the L-S-E." Tom Bum, Greg Callus, Alex Evans and John Matthews have frequently asked the sort of probing non-specialist questions that force one to re-evaluate some fundamental tenets of the thesis. I am grateful to them for the interest they have shown. I am also grateful to Gabriella Slomp and Robert Howse for stimulating correspondence that has immeasurably improved my understanding of certain ambiguities in Schmitt's work. In exploring the religious and theological aspects of the thesis, I have been fortunate to develop links with the ECPR Standing Group on Religion. I am grateful to Giorgio Shani for chairing a panel at the ECPR Conference in Budapest in September 2005 where I had the opportunity to present an earlier version of Chapter 3 of this thesis. I also developed certain themes from Chapters 3 and 4 at the IPSA Conference in Fukuoka, Japan, in July 2006, in a panel chaired by Jeff Haynes. I am grateful to Giorgio and Jeff for including me in these events, and for their stimulating discussions of my work. I am also grateful to other participants for their criticisms and encouragement, and in particular to Vendulka Kubalkova, Mustapha Pasha and Richard Ryscavage. Many research students perhaps experience the sense of living on borrowed time. In my case, this was quite literally so, as I laboured towards a finite start date with my present employer, Clifford Chance. During this period they have provided me with substantial material support, affording me the freedom to focus on my research without the constant distraction of part time work. In recent months, they have also offered me the flexibility necessary to complete this project. 6 None of this would have been possible without the relentless support and encouragement of my family.