POLITICAL THEORY IN AN AGE OF CRISIS: AN OVERVIEW
POLITICAL THEORY IN AN AGE OF CRISIS: AN OVERVIEW

Summary/Abstract: Shortly after the begin of the global pandemic of the Corona virus, numerous leading social and humanistic intellectuals attempted to respond to the situation we all found ourselves in. Two years later, the “new normal” has, almost imperceptibly, blended into the “normal”. Wearing protective masks is understood, physical distance is upheld, the sight of hugging and crowds from past concerts or movie screenings cause discomfort, while new regulations, from traveling to public assembly and events, are undoubtedly becoming a part of our reality. The paradoxical situation in which isolation and social (conscious rather than physical) distance have become an act of collective engagement and solidarity, places fear and safety above freedom, and common good behind individual responsibility. Thus, it seems that the issue of returning to a previous normalcy has been wrongly set from the beginning – neither is the post-pandemic society going to appear after the virus vanishes, nor did the crisis begin only with the pandemic. Portraying the way the pandemic undoubtedly influenced all aspects of sociability, the author uses a panoramic overview of the most recent theoretical reviews from the past two years, to identify three important topics which arose in these circumstances: the issue of social control, the role of modern technology and social networks, and the issue of social distribution and the anticipation of new possible forms of sociability. Connecting practical action with theory, disruptive processes prove to be of immense importance in desacralizing the foundations from which we were taught to look at and interpret the world, regardless of the outcome.

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