Critical Methods in the Face of Crisis – Analytical and Critical Political Theory in Dialogue

For political theorists to develop methods capable of grappling with current crises we need to overcome the lack of cross-fertilization between analytical and critical traditions of political theory. We are confident in overcoming this division because theorists from both traditions not only address similar problems – such as climate crisis and democratic erosion – but also develop methods with similar goals. On the one hand, analytical political theorists have recently advanced discussion of a variety of methodological questions and tools, with a renewed focus on real world problems and practices, for example in the debates about ideal and non-ideal theory (Simmons, Valentini, Mills), practice-(in)dependence (Sangiovanni, James), political moralism and political realism (Estlund, Rossi and Sleat), as well as normative behaviourism (Floyd). On the other hand, critical theorists have meanwhile refined their methodological tools, focusing on re-interpreting ideology critique (Haslanger, Celikates), immanent critique (Stahl, Jaeggi), rational reconstruction (Habermas, Patberg), or genealogy (Saar, Allen). However, these commonalities have not been legible enough for both traditions to lead to cross-fertilization. To overcome this division, our workshop provides a clear structure for bringing exponents of both traditions together to address the questions of how to understand methods of critique, and what specific methods to employ in conducting critique in times of crisis. Our workshop will thus substantiate the application of the recent methodological turn in political theory and, judging from the expressions of interest received, expand the range of political theorizing covered by ECPR and further integrate political theory communities across Europe.

1: How do current methods of critique fail to address domestic and global crises?
2: Which methods of critique are especially apt in times of crisis?
3: Do we need different methods for different crises, e.g. with regard to climate and democratic representation?
4: How do we connect analytical and critical theory to craft methods capable of addressing the current crises?
5: Can such connections maintain the distinctive qualities of both traditions of political theory?

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