Problematizing the problematic : Foucault and Althusser

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Abstract

In this article, I re-examine the relationship between the thoughts of contemporaneous and associated late twentieth-century French philosophers Michel Foucault and Louis Althusser, through the prism of the notion of the problem. I discuss the philology of the use of the noun “problematic” in French philosophy in relation to Foucault and Althusser’s use of it, concluding that while Althusser makes this a term of art in his thought, Foucault does not make any particular use of this concept. I nonetheless consider the possibility of the existence of a similar notion under a different name, episteme, in Foucault’s thought, but conclude that this is a distinct notion from Althusser’s “problematic.” I then consider Foucault’s later, idiosyncratic notion of problematization and its possible relation to Althusser’s conceptual framework. I conclude that, despite divergent vocabularies, Althusser and Foucault do have a common problematic and approach to problematization, though Foucault also problematizes aspects of Althusser’s problematic, effectively taking problematization a step further.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)155-169
Number of pages15
JournalAngelaki
Volume23
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2018

Keywords

  • Althusser_Louis_1918, 1990
  • Foucault_Michel_1926, 1984
  • philosophy
  • problematics

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