Agamben’in Kutsal İnsan’ı, Müphemliğin Mekânı Olarak Kamp ve Gazze
Agamben’s Homo Sacer, the Camp as the Space of Ambiguity and Gaza

Summary/Abstract: Aim: This article provides a critical re-examination of Giorgio Agamben’s “Homo Sacer” project, which proposes that the fundamental nomos of biopolitics is the camp, rather than the city (polis). The central problem of the research is to elucidate how modern political rationality is structured around the paradigm of "inclusive exclusion" and how the homo sacer figure represents a form of life simultaneously positioned both inside and outside the juridico-political order. The objective of the present study is threefold. Firstly, it seeks to elucidate the conceptual architecture of Agamben’s thesis. Agamben's thesis. Secondly, it identifies three critical gaps in the extant literature. These gaps pertain to a paucity of dialogue with post-colonial thought, a scarcity of empirical case studies, and a lack of a normative ethical vocabulary to address the profound ethical issues posed by the camp. Thirdly and finally, the study proposes a theoretical framework to bridge these gaps. The research is of considerable significance insofar as it facilitates a more profound comprehension of the technologies of power that engender a permanent state of exception, in addition to the contemporary political crises that systematically produce bare life. Methodology: The present study employs a qualitative design based on the “paradigm” methodology, which Agamben defines as a “singular case” that reveals the general rule of a phenomenon. In this regard, Gaza is regarded not only as an empirical case study but also as a paradigmatic threshold where the state of exception has become institutionalised. The analytical process combines a hermeneutic construction of Agamben’s foundational texts with a content analysis of UN and human rights reports (OCHA, UNRWA, etc.). The methodological innovation lies in interpreting these data not merely as statistics, but as conceptual indicators that decipher the mechanisms of the production of bare life. Findings: The study’s key findings are developed in three stages. Firstly, by reconstructing the genealogy of the shift from the polis to the camp, it is demonstrated that the permanent state of exception has become the constitutive matrix of modern biopolitics. Secondly, the homo sacer figure is revealed as a device that stabilizes the juridico-political technology of ambiguity, exposing Agamben's implicit contribution to modernity's effort to discredit ambiguity. Thirdly, the Gaza is examined as a living laboratory where basic life is systematically produced, administered, and extinguished, illustrating how the theory manifests in a concrete space. In summary, the conclusion of the study is that the camp is no longer a temporary site but rather a permanent spatial manifestation form of political rationality. Conclusion: The article concludes that any valid critique of contemporary power must begin with the irreducible nexus between life and law exposed by the homo sacer figure. The study’s original contribution lies in supporting Agamben’s theoretical framework with a concrete case analysis via the Gaza example while identifying the gaps in the existing literature. The theoretical implication is that the separation between zoe (bare life) and bios (qualified life) is continuously produced and managed by today’s apparatuses of biopower. The practical implication of this is that political communities must challenge the normalization of the state of emergency and strive to envision forms of collective life that are predicated on something other than the logic of “inclusive exclusion.” It is recommended that future research be undertaken to facilitate a more profound dialogue between the homo sacer concept and post-colonial/decolonial theories and to develop a new normative ethical vocabulary focusing on the profound ethical issues generated by the camp.

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