‘Hunger for Certainty’: Misrecognition, Masculinity and Agentic Action in India’s and Russia’s Desires for Neocolonial Subjecthood
(2024) In Global Discourse p.1-25- Abstract
- This article takes as its point of departure the postcolonial understanding of the nation as a subject constructed through the colonial encounter. It argues that at the core of both colonial and postcolonial subject formations lies a desire for reconstructing a homogeneous nation that fulfils a ‘hunger for certainty’. The use of the term ‘hunger for certainty’ testifies to the emotional as well as corporeal desires involved in the quest for recognition. However, any such quest is always a process of misrecognition, involving fantasies of impossible wholeness and fulfilment. Proceeding from a Lacanian account of sublimation, lack and desire, we analyse the relationship between misrecognition, ontological insecurity, masculinity and agentic... (More)
- This article takes as its point of departure the postcolonial understanding of the nation as a subject constructed through the colonial encounter. It argues that at the core of both colonial and postcolonial subject formations lies a desire for reconstructing a homogeneous nation that fulfils a ‘hunger for certainty’. The use of the term ‘hunger for certainty’ testifies to the emotional as well as corporeal desires involved in the quest for recognition. However, any such quest is always a process of misrecognition, involving fantasies of impossible wholeness and fulfilment. Proceeding from a Lacanian account of sublimation, lack and desire, we analyse the relationship between misrecognition, ontological insecurity, masculinity and agentic action in two neocolonial settings: Russia and India. By discursively deconstructing the official discourse of those speaking in the name of the state – in our case, Vladimir Putin and Narendra Modi – we show how this ‘hunger for certainty’ is at the core of neocolonial agentic action and how desires for recognition are constantly underpinned by masculinity and unfulfilled desires for wholeness. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/e7762029-17cc-4ece-b0fc-6aef4e29a374
- author
- Kinnvall, Catarina LU and Svensson, Ted LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-01-12
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- epub
- subject
- keywords
- ontological security, postcolonialism, empire, India, Russia, masculinity, misrecognition
- in
- Global Discourse
- pages
- 25 pages
- publisher
- Bristol University Press
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85186263046
- ISSN
- 2043-7897
- DOI
- 10.1332/20437897Y2023D000000032
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- e7762029-17cc-4ece-b0fc-6aef4e29a374
- date added to LUP
- 2024-01-12 16:47:43
- date last changed
- 2024-03-15 14:35:09
@article{e7762029-17cc-4ece-b0fc-6aef4e29a374,
abstract = {{This article takes as its point of departure the postcolonial understanding of the nation as a subject constructed through the colonial encounter. It argues that at the core of both colonial and postcolonial subject formations lies a desire for reconstructing a homogeneous nation that fulfils a ‘hunger for certainty’. The use of the term ‘hunger for certainty’ testifies to the emotional as well as corporeal desires involved in the quest for recognition. However, any such quest is always a process of misrecognition, involving fantasies of impossible wholeness and fulfilment. Proceeding from a Lacanian account of sublimation, lack and desire, we analyse the relationship between misrecognition, ontological insecurity, masculinity and agentic action in two neocolonial settings: Russia and India. By discursively deconstructing the official discourse of those speaking in the name of the state – in our case, Vladimir Putin and Narendra Modi – we show how this ‘hunger for certainty’ is at the core of neocolonial agentic action and how desires for recognition are constantly underpinned by masculinity and unfulfilled desires for wholeness.}},
author = {{Kinnvall, Catarina and Svensson, Ted}},
issn = {{2043-7897}},
keywords = {{ontological security; postcolonialism; empire; India; Russia; masculinity; misrecognition}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{01}},
pages = {{1--25}},
publisher = {{Bristol University Press}},
series = {{Global Discourse}},
title = {{‘Hunger for Certainty’: Misrecognition, Masculinity and Agentic Action in India’s and Russia’s Desires for Neocolonial Subjecthood}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1332/20437897Y2023D000000032}},
doi = {{10.1332/20437897Y2023D000000032}},
year = {{2024}},
}