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The One and the Many: a Discourse Analysis of Sovereignty in Liberal Civic Republicanism with Prospects for an African American Political Theology

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The One and the Many: a Discourse Analysis of Sovereignty in Liberal Civic Republicanism with Prospects for an African American Political Theology The One and the Many: A Discourse Analysis of Sovereignty in Liberal Civic Republicanism with Prospects for an African American Political Theology By Asante U. Todd Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Vanderbilt University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in Religion May 2016 Nashville, Tennessee Approved: Victor Anderson, Ph.D. Ellen T. Armour, Ph.D. Stacey Floyd-Thomas Ph.D. Ted A. Smith Ph.D. Tracy Sharpley-Whiting Ph.D. Copyright © 2016 by Asante U. Todd All Rights Reserved ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation would not have been possible without the help of so many. I want to thank my advisor and dissertation director, Dr. Victor Anderson. His sage guidance has helped me to think through the difficulties not only of this topic, but also of things not reducible to paper and ink. I’m also grateful to others on the dissertation committee: Dr. Ellen T. Armour, Dr. Stacey Floyd- Thomas, Dr. Tracy Sharpley-Whiting and Dr. Ted A. Smith. Their comments helped me think in new directions on a very old problem. This dissertation was also supported by both the Vanderbilt University Program in Theology and Practice (T&P), under the direction of Dr. Ted A. Smith and today, Dr. Jaco Hammon, as well as the Forum for Theological Exploration (FTE), under the leadership of President Stephen Lewis and Ms. Darlene Hutto. Both T&P and FTE provided me with much needed personal and financial support. I’m grateful to my colleagues at Austin Presbyterian Theological Seminary, whose decision to employ a not-yet minted doctor provided me with the means and space to think through this problem from further vantage points. I thank my pastor, Joseph C. Parker, Jr. Esq., D.Min., as rigorous in matters of the heart and spirit as he is of the mind. Finally, this work would not have been possible without my family. This includes, first, my parents. My father, Howard Wayne Todd, is a learner and a teacher, and my mother, Terri Lynn Todd, a caregiver. Their combined care for knowledge and knowledge of care inspired me to and through the doctoral process. Among my many siblings, all of who have encouraged me along the way, I would like to especially thank my older sister, Neemesha Brown, whose living room couch in upper east Manhattan provided a home for me during a sustained portion of the writing process. I also want to thank my youngest sister, Nia Njema Young, whose courage and faith during her own struggle for life, and ultimate demise, reminds me to take courage in the face of any challenge, even sovereign power. To all of you, much love. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................... iii INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................1 PART I: SOVEREIGNTY AND THE METAPHYSICS OF NATURE 1. Jean Bodin and Thomas Hobbes: Monarchial Sovereignty ..................................................19 A. Jean Bodin Introduction………………………………………………………………………………….19 Context ...................................................................................................................................20 The “Theater” of Nature and the Body ...................................................................................22 The Political Body ..................................................................................................................29 On Sovereignty .......................................................................................................................32 B. Thomas Hobbes Introduction………………………………………………………………………………….36 Context ...................................................................................................................................36 The State of Nature and the Body ..........................................................................................37 The Political Body ..................................................................................................................44 On Sovereignty ......................................................................................................................47 Conclusion ..............................................................................................................................50 2. John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau: On Popular Sovereignty ......................................52 A. John Locke Introduction………………….………………………………………………………………52 Context… ...............................................................................................................................54 The State of Nature and the Body .........................................................................................55 The Political Body ..................................................................................................................61 On Sovereignty .......................................................................................................................63 B. Jean Jacques Rousseau Introduction………………………………………………………………………………….65 Context ..................................................................................................................................65 The State of Nature and the Body ..........................................................................................66 The Political Body ..................................................................................................................72 On Sovereignty ......................................................................................................................74 Conclusion ..............................................................................................................................79 iv PART II. SOVEREIGNTY AND THE RATIOANLITY OF STATE 3. Immanuel Kant: The Sovereignty of Reason ........................................................................82 Introduction……………………………………………………………….…………………82 Context ..................................................................................................................................83 The State of Nature and the Body .........................................................................................84 The Political Body ................................................................................................................100 On Sovereignty .....................................................................................................................103 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................105 4. G.W.F. Hegel: Sovereignty and the Rationality of State ...................................................107 Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………107 Context .................................................................................................................................108 The State of Nature and the Body ........................................................................................111 The Political Body ................................................................................................................115 The Dialectics of Sovereignty ..............................................................................................121 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................129 5. Carl Schmitt: The Political in Totalized Sovereign Dictatorship ........................................131 Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………131 Context .................................................................................................................................132 The State of Nature and the Body .......................................................................................136 “The Political” Body ............................................................................................................149 On Sovereignty .....................................................................................................................152 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................155 6. Hannah Arendt: The Separation of Powers, The Rule of Law and Revolutionary Politics 159 Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………159 Context .................................................................................................................................159 The State of Nature and the Body .......................................................................................162 The Political Body ................................................................................................................172 On Sovereignty .....................................................................................................................178 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................185 7. Giorgio Agamben: Toward a New Paradigm of Sovereignty, The State of Exception…..188 Introduction…..…………………………………………………………………………….188 Context………………………………………………………………………....….………190 Agamben on the State of Nature…………………………………………………………..192 The State of Exception and the Biopolitical Body………………………………………...198 Sovereign Power as Biopolitics, Ideology,
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