Abstract
This article deals critically with the process of coming to terms with ‘genocide’. It starts from the observation that conventional philosophical and legal approaches to capturing the essence of ‘genocide’ through an improved definition necessarily fail to adapt to the ever-changing nature of political violence. Faced with this challenge, the article suggests that the contemporary debate on genocide (and its denial) should be complemented with a focus on transforming the perceptive and interpretive frameworks through which acts of violence are discussed in the public sphere. The main purpose of this article is to contribute, from the vantage point of political theory, to this debate by offering a novel normative perspective on negative reactions to genocide. Hence I argue that it is productive to speak of ‘genocide blindness’ in cases when the members of the public sphere are simply incapable of seeing an instance of violence as genocidal. To establish this claim, the article introduces Ludwig Wittgenstein’s reflections on ‘aspect-seeing’ so as to underline the importance of changing the way that political violence is perceived and interpreted. In a second step, the article turns to María Pía Lara’s theory of storytelling as a concrete mechanism for triggering and instituting this kind of change.
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Notes
For a deflationary position regarding the practical effect of the word ‘genocide’ see Glanville, 2009.
Throughout this article I intend to use ‘term’ and ‘word’ synonymously, and keep them apart from ‘concept’. This terminology reflects the concerns expressed by Wittgenstein about many uses of ‘concept’, which are summarized above.
From academic circles, the debate regularly spills over into the judicial arena. Sometimes genocide deniers take recourse to challenging the soundness of historical scholarship in the courtroom, as it has recently been the case in Irving v. Lipstadt, with its devastating ruling on David Irving’s ruminations (Evans, 2001).
I thank an anonymous reviewer for urging me to clarify this point.
For a very strong (and disputed) equation of ‘Holocaust denial’ and ‘climate change denial’ see Tomkiewicz (2011). For a more refined appraisal of environmental factors of violence see Homer-Dixon (1999). For the case of Tuvalu see Barnett (2003). For another position arguing that genocide can only be fought effectively if its social, economic and environmental pre-conditions – massive global inequality and predatory capitalism – are eradicated, see Levene (2004).
The idea that Wittgenstein may teach political theorists something crucial is not new. Following in the footsteps of Hanna Pitkin, several authors have attempted to recover Wittgenstein’s potential for exploring diverse political phenomena. See Holt (1997); Mouffe (2000); Pitkin (1972); Pleasants (1999); Tully (1989); Zerilli (1998). A recent book (Robinson, 2009) even seeks to systematize political theory’s reception of Wittgenstein in general.
The following passages owe their existence to the perceptive and constructive criticism of one of the reviewers. I am very grateful for having been directed towards a better understanding of Wittgenstein in the context of ‘essentially contested concepts’.
Many of these authors take their cues from Stanley Cavell’s influential interpretation (Cavell, 1999). Cavell refers at several points to Wittgenstein’s discussion of ‘aspect-seeing’ (Cavell, 1981, p. 36; 2007, pp. 282–283) For a very interesting use of ‘aspect-seeing’ in the analysis of ‘liberty’, see Havercroft (2003). For a feminist appropriation of Wittgenstein’s reflections, see Heyes (2007, pp. 15–37).
In what follows, I will use ‘genealogy’ and ‘narratives’ as largely synonymous. This is obviously not fully compatible with Owen’s account of liberation from aspectival captivity. However, for my purpose it is important to emphasize the different fora in which ‘emancipation and enlightenment’ can occur. Storytelling in precisely Lara’s sense appears to be the most promising manner to instil citizens with ‘a new way of seeing things’.
On the relation between individual and collective dimensions of storytelling, see Appiah (2005, pp. 22–23).
Some scholars prefer to use the Hebrew word ‘Shoah’ instead of ‘Holocaust’. For a comprehensive account of both terms, see Petrie (2000).
For a recent contribution to the Holocaust debate that triggered a semantic shock, consider for example Timothy Snyder’s concept of ‘bloodlands’ (Snyder, 2010).
In fact, both reviewers as well as the journal’s editors have pressed me to clarify my position vis-à-vis the narrative approach’s normative foundations. I thank them for their perceptive remarks.
On the futility of (some types of) ethical theory for moral reasoning, see Williams (1981, pp. ix–x).
To be sure, powerful stories will often come perilously close to proselytizing, especially when their objective is to move the imagination of the public – the media frenzy around the Kony 2012 campaign, for example, testifies to the thin line separating manipulative from non-manipulative storytelling (Waldorf, 2012; Cadwalladr, 2013).
This notion of a critical community of spectators could be further elaborated with reference to Jeffrey Green’s (2010) model of plebiscitary democracy.
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Acknowledgements
Earlier versions of this article were presented on three different occasions: at the Ideals and Reality in Social Ethics conference in Caerleon (2012); during the Meetings on Ethics and Political Philosophy in Braga (2012); and in the Political Theory Research Group seminar in Edinburgh (2012). I greatly benefitted from the vibrant discussions at all these events. Moreover, I owe thanks to several (old and new) colleagues, whose generous and sharp feedback helped me in refining the ideas defended in this article: André Barrinha, Matteo Bonotti, Liz Cripps, Christina Dineen, Alessandro Ferrara, Tim Hayward, Alex Latham, Chris Macleod, João Cardoso Rosas, Ashley Taylor and Alan Wilson. David Owen set the article on a more promising track when he kindly pointed me to his own work on Wittgenstein. As always, Mihaela Mihai most carefully read and charitably commented on the manuscript at various stages. Last but not least, I express my sincere gratitude to the editors as well as to the two anonymous referees of this journal for their constructive criticisms, and encouragements. Special thanks go to Sam Chambers for expertly guiding the manuscript through the review process. The usual disclaimers apply.
Financial support: The research for this article has been supported by a Marie Curie Career Integration Grant within the 7th Framework Programme of the European Community.
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Thaler, M. Political imagination and the crime of crimes: Coming to terms with ‘genocide’ and ‘genocide blindness’. Contemp Polit Theory 13, 358–379 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1057/cpt.2013.48
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/cpt.2013.48