The Commons Against the Nation-State?
The idea of a multidimensional “common,” which includes collective practices, political decisions and theoretical reflections, seeks to establish a “third way,” distinct from both the market and the State; according to its promoters, it would restore a radical democracy, synonymous with self-government and the extension of collective rights of use. This contribution aims to examine the theoretical underpinnings and practical viability of this “sociopolitics of the common” (proposed in particular in the work of Dardot and Laval, Commun. Essai sur la révolution au XXIe siècle), which establishes the self-institution as a universal device of associative praxis, in order to circumvent the difficulties of ensuring a “public service” without recourse to the institutional mechanisms of the State, perceived as a vector of centralized domination. Excessive insistence on the pragmatic construction of collectives misses the importance of “instituted” forms, which are considered essentialist. This philosophical anthropology then runs the risk of missing the imaginary and symbolic “common good” inherent to any concrete community.