Parody, the Party, Politics, and Postcapitalism: Some Thoughts on a Shared Future

Abstract

This essay responds to the generous commentaries on the talks Jodi Dean and I delivered during the 2013 Rethinking Marxism International Conference. It offers further reflections on communism as a political project, on its relation to postcapitalist practices, and on Dean's desire to “return to the party,” making two distinct interventions. First, while I remain agonistic about the relevance of the party, I express concerns about Dean's sharp delineation between what is political and what is merely lifestyle choice, postcapitalism being encompassed in the latter. I draw parallels between Dean's use of parody and Judith Butler's intervention in the Sokal affair and “left conservatism.” Second, I further explore what counts as political, drawing upon Jonathan Dean's characterization of widespread depoliticization narratives as “tales of the apolitical”—fantasies in the Lacanian sense. I argue that when the Left is in this fantasy's “grip,” it misses a politics of communism in the present.

Key Words:

• Apolitical
• Communism
• Fantasy
• Parody
• Postcapitalism

Notes

1 One could make a similar point about how indigenous communities (and their diverse economies) persisted through both the Soviet and post-Soviet eras and spread over vast spaces, including areas where petropolitics is a dominant concern (Pavlovskaya 2013).

2 I think it's worth mentioning that, while Occupy was forcibly dispersed by the police, some of the anti- and postcapitalist activities begun there continue to this day. For instance, Occupy networks were mobilized to deal with the aftereffects of Superstorm Sandy, and Solidarity NYC continues ongoing efforts to develop an economy based on intercooperation.