#title Anarchism: A Legacy of Postmodernism
#author Shaukat, Fakhr ul Munir & Muhammad Hamza
#date Fall 2021
#source *Global Political Review*, Vol. 6, No. 4 (Fall 2021), Pages 14–20. <[[http://dx.doi.org/10.31703/gpr.2021(VI-IV).02][dx.doi.org/10.31703/gpr.2021(VI-IV).02]]>
#lang en
#pubdate 2024-03-16T01:23:57
#authors Shaukat, Fakhr ul Munir, Muhammad Hamza
#topics anarchism
#isbn Print ISSN: 2521–2982, Digital ISSN: 2707–4587
#notes The language is in broken English and the thesis is anti-anarchist, however it’s amusing seeing how anarchism is regarded by different people influenced by local contexts. The authors of this text appear to be thinking about anarchist history through the lens of Pakistani politics and ‘the war on terror’.
**Recommended Citation:** Shaukat, Munir, F. u., & Hamza, M. (2021). Anarchism: A Legacy of Postmodernism. *Global Political Review*, *VI*(IV), 14–20. https://doi.org/10.31703/gpr.2021(VI-IV).02
**Abstract**
This study has made the implicit links between
postmodernism and anarchism explicit in order to uncover
the philosophical origins of terrorism in the postmodern society. This study
deals with the Anarchists’ philosophical background and how
Postmodernism fanned it. Anarchists’ approach mainly whirls around a
single point agenda, and that is, they are against the state or existence of
states’ borders. I mention again what Researcher have already mentioned,
the state and all other international institutions emerged after a rational
approach as stated by Hegel. Postmodernism denied that reality in every
contour, whether those are institutions or anything else. Anarchism brought
this concept into a broader paradigm and started denying the existence of
the state. So, both postmodernists and anarchists have denied the reality
in their own capacities, but the grounds and arguments are the same.
Anarchism paved the way for multiple active terrors based centrifugal
movements throughout the world.
**Key Words:** Postmodernism, Anarchism, Neoconservatives, Leo Strauss, Nietzsche, Iraq, Weapons of
Mass Destruction
*** Introduction
It is very much doable to understand
postmodernism from different events than through
reams of text. Once a person asked St Augustine
that what literature is? He replied, until the
moment you didn’t ask me, I knew what literature
is (Sahar 2020–21). The same is the problem with
postmodernism, too. We don’t have any sort of
definition of postmodernism, neither subjective nor
universal. According to Norman K. Denzin,”
Postmodernism is an impenetrable jargon
(Delaney, 2014).” In the jurisdiction of social
sciences, the erudite faction defines everything
subjectively. The genuine yarn behind this approach
is that the source of episteme or knowledge in social sciences is not purely empirical but a rational, unlike natural
sciences, where we define different concepts objectively.
The same is the case with postmodernism; too, everyone has defined it
according to his capacity, approach, and level of knowledge.”
Postmodernism is when you put everything in question marks (Palmer,
2014).” Secondly, in social sciences, we define different concepts in a
comparative manner. As it is very explicit from history than whenever we
try to define modernism, we compare it with the dark ages because both
act as a thesis and anti-thesis. This comparative analysis of different
theories and approaches makes it much easy to define different concepts very explicitly but, postmodernism has
deprived itself of this sort of analysis because postmodernism has
rejected and has tried to demolish the very foundation of modernism and
all its margins which whirl around the modernism. Postmodernism is
trying to define itself in a personal capacity without taking help from
existing episteme for which postmodernism acts as an anti-thesis. Now
when it is doesn’t take help from alien concepts to define it, we have
an alternative way, too, to define this jargon.
*** Literature Review
Nietzschean anarchy should not be seen as isolated, unimportant
political oddities. As a result, I would suggest that Nietzsche’s
anarchist tendencies should be viewed as part of the broader framework
for understanding the development and collapse of rationalist political
humanism. Using an overly simplified diagram, this web might look
something like this: At one end is European Enlightenment political and
intellectual order, the great liberal revolutions of late 18th century,
the liberal states that emerged from those revolutions, and all of the
epistemological and representational assumptions that underlie such
states (Call, 2002).
At the cease of the 19th century, everyone wasprone and vulnerable to
terrorism. At the very endof the 19th century, a state denying
personassassinated French executive. Another heart-wrenching incident of
the late 19th century was theassassination of Austria’s Queen along with
thebrutal murder of Spanish PM. At the dawn of the20th century, if we
examine the agendas of thepoliticians, police, journalists, and writers;
terrorismwas at the top of the list (Laqueur, 1996), Laqueur,W.
(1996).
But with the rise of postmodern philosophies, the pre-established ideas
of faith, ethics, and reason became uncertain, which blurred the
construct of meaning. The similar tendency can be seen in the decline of
a militant fundamentalism from its following of very basic religious
truths to the detaching of any ethical construct it was associated with
previously. ISIS can undoubtedly be added to the list of postmodern,
neo- fundamentalist ideologies that are the harbors of violence, and it
is very clear that militant fundamentalism grows out of such places that are generically chaotic. (Rasheed,2018).
Postmodernism is a versatile concept. Apart from adding fuel to the
ongoing terrorism in the world, it owns aesthetics, art, and many more
wings. The Postmodern terrorist factions such as ISIS, AQ, and many more
don’t represent postmodernism completely. Postmodernism has its
contribution to the domain of art, Philosophy, Poetry, and Literature.
Making it notorious phenomena on the basis of its certain peripheries
would not be justice (Lloyd 2016).
Since ancient times, religion instituted meaning in human consciousness
through its spiritual injunctions, ethical distinction of right from
wrong as well as restrictions on the bestial and carnal instincts. With
the coming of European enlightenment, rationalism and science set new
standards of personal, societal, and universal values. However, with the
rise of postmodern philosophies, certitude in established institutions
of faith, ethics, and even reason started to crumble and thereby the
very construct of meaning began to blur. A similar trend is perceptible
in the descent of militant fundamentalism from its avowed pursuance of
essential religious truths to a near-complete breakdown of any ethical
construct it claimed to cling to (Rasheed 2018).
*** Postmodernist Philosophical Background of Anarchists and how they fanned
the Terror in the world?
**** French Revolution and the Emergence of Anarchism?
Enlightenment acts as a commencement point for the anarchism. The basic
objectives of the french revolution were Freedom, and equality. These
breeds of the revolution backed Anarchists to question the revolutions’
objectives. If we examine anarchism generally, we can say that anarchism
is something in which one becomes reluctant and uncertain about many
sensitive and established truths such as state, International
institutions, and even about the religious beliefs (Ibañez 2008). If we
intensely and deeply dissect anarchism and its foundations, it becomes
clear that they do not want any sort of extraneous regime or authority;
even they oppose the existence of state. This denying of reality is the basic
aim and one of the postulates of the anarchism. Actually they fight with
a stance and that is based on the argument that which is a superior
phenomenon, whether Authority and state or Individuals’ freedom and
autonomy (Marshal 2010).
The whole philosophy of anarchism and even all of its peripheries whirl
around one thing and that is Freedom. It is very much important to
contextualize and understand the word “authority” from the anarchists’
perspective. They have included Well informed and Well named people,
along with the one who inborn power holder in the domain and
jurisdiction of the authority. According to some of the expert in this
field of study, that they don’t have any problem with the authority as
long as it doesn’t interfere in activities of the common masses and the
freedom of the common heads remain safe (Critchley, 2012).”
**** Entente between Anarchism and Postmodernism
This study will make the links between postmodern philosopher Nietzsche
and the anarchism explicit. We will also make this thing clear that
whether this entente between the two is a direct one or it exists in an
unconscious form. Simple as that, the main objective of this part is to
demonstrate the existence of links between Anarchists’ values and
Nietzsche’s work. Finding these ties between the two isn’t possible
without following the analogical method in order to compare Nietzsche’s
philosophy and the epistemological paradigm established by him with that
of the Anarchists. It can be seen that Nietzsche was a stern opponent of
anarchism but still his words matter. Despite the fact that he has
denounced anarchism, but his blunt writing has paved the way for such an
active state denying movement. Simply we can say that Nietzsche’s
writings and his philosophy are compatible with anarchists’ postulates,
aims, and sayings.
We have few points where Nietzsche has accused, denounced, and alleged
the anarchists. But at the same time, Nietzsche has alienated himself
from reality seekers, too. This dual nature of his philosophy puts one
in an imbroglio. Oscillating in limbo after studying Nietzsche is
natural thing. But the dominancy of his pro-anarchists’ writings makes it doable to put him in faction and calibrators of the anarchism. His
philosophy of “God is dead” and the concept of “superman” both is
actually denying reality in their own capacities. Denying or ignoring
reality is the point of compatibility between postmodernists and
especially Nietzsche and Anarchists (Iliopoulos, 2019).
This technique may help solve some of the historiography’s problems
expressed by Jacques Derrida, who has stated that “the centre accepts
multiple forms or names successfully and in a controlled way.”
Metaphysical history, like Western history, is the history of metaphors
and metonymies. Its matrix determines Being as presence in all senses of
the word.” Derrida is correct to be wary of the centered “metaphysics of
presence” that has dominated Western thinking since Plato because
presence implies absence, and any fixed center must rely on an excluded
periphery for its very existence. The matrix I want to suggest, however,
is the polar opposite of the “matrix” of Western metaphysics described
by Derrida above because the postmodern matrix has no core (Call, 2002).
Taking the centerless, hypertextual matrix as our model and postmodern
philosophy as our topic of inquiry, we might then proceed as follows.
*** Postmodern Anarchism in Contemporary Political Scenario/World
First, let me underline that postmodern anarchism is simply one strain
of current anarchism, a fascinating and essential strain, to be sure,
but only one strain. Anarchism of the postmodern sort would incorporate
classic critiques of capital and state, but it would also go far beyond
these critiques to build a political philosophy that is suited to the
postmodern era. One, postmodern anarchism asserts, beginning with
Nietzsche, an anarchy of the subject, in contrast to traditional
anarchism’s strangely unified subject. The postmodern subject is and
must remain multifarious, scattered, and schizophrenic, as Deleuze would
put it. Within the postmodern enterprise, this anarchy of the subject
supports the preservation and growth of difference and Otherness. This
anarchy of the subject limits the possibility of a totalitarian
subjectivity like that of the Leninist vanguard by stressing that all
subjectivities must be absolutely provisional and promoting the formation of numerous strands of subjectivity within a
single “person.” Nietzschean philosophy offers comparable anarchy of
being to ensure that this anarchy of the subject has the status of a
perpetual revolution. In the Nietzschean approach, a postmodern
anarchist must be constantly conquering himself. The Nietzschean
anarchist avoids the danger that her subjectivity would recrystallize in
a totalizing manner by continually radicalising the subject, by
constantly immersing the “self” in the river of becoming.
Secondly, keeping in view the status and nature of power, the Anarchists
are divided in two different cadres. We have classical as well as
postmodern anarchists. The view of the postmodern ones is far broader,
technical, and jargonistic in nature. Foucault, too, represents the
postmodern faction. Foucault diminished classicalism or traditionl’s
approach and drags power out of just fiscal and regime setup, and left
it with broader understanding. It left Foucault naked to a critique
about the division of power and resistance. According to Foucault, Power
shrinks and entails resistance. Power acts as a cause for the
resistance. Where power exists, resistance must be there. This concept
of Foucault is extremely pragmatic in nature. The use of power against
many movements in the West has further boomed those movements. We have
the examples of Gay movement, lesbian’s movement, and many more.
*** Philosophical Background of Anarchism
The philosophical and epistemological background of anarchism is very
explicit from the above-stated literature, and more precisely, in
Nietzsche’s context. The ending part of this question deals with the
atrocious activities of the anarchists during different hours of the
history. There are ample cases in which the anarchists have carried out
their brutal activities, which portray how active this movement is.
It was religion that had trapped humans’ minds and had tried to
socialize them according to the revealed scriptures, which was consisted
of the universal and defined nature of good and evil.
Religion, before the enlightenment epoch, used to ban the rational
approaches of any sort. The renaissance promoted positivism or rational methodology through which human beings started questioning and doubting
any sort of established concept and this thing, in the long run, further
cleaned that path for the growth of postmodern attitude.
*** ISIS and Al-Qaeda’s Dissection in the Context of Anarchism
As stated by Strauss about noble lie, same was/is the case with militant
organizations like AQ and ISIS. They, in their foggy contour, has tried
to portray their type of struggle in the veil of religion to make people
assume that they are trying and tussling according to the religious
scriptures and pursuing the truth. But the reality was different. Their
struggle was not against social evils like poverty etc. The only aim was
to spread terror in the world and to grab political power in the world
as stated by the ISIS’s leader in a letter to Osama that the only
difference between you and us is that we want to catch the attention
through horror and heart-wrenching activities.
Terror, the only way AQ had followed in order to get what they wanted.
This was the point where they deviated from religion for the sake of
their ends. As religion stops the fighters from the genocide of the
innocent one but the case is different when we examine AQ and ISIS’s
activities and their atrocities against the innocent masses. It becomes
clear and doable to exclude ISIS and AQ from the religious jihadist list
and add them to the postmodern list (Rasheed, 2018).
We have a huge amount of literature about AQ and Osama’s way of jihad;
little has been written about bin Laden’s thoughts as influenced by
European Marxist postmodernism. In reality, al Qaeda’s doctrine owes as
much too harmful tendencies in Western philosophy as it does to a
distortion of Muslim principles in justifying its acts of violence.
Osama bin Laden’s terror philosophy is partially a product of the West.
To understand this, one must return to the intellectual brew that formed
Third World socialism’s ideology in the 1960s (Newell, Postmodern Jihad
2001).
*** The Link between Terrorism and Anarchism
Yes. When we dissect the scenario of the last days of the 19th century, it portrays that everyone was prone and have left
vulnerable to terrorist attacks, means no one was guarded against these
atrocious activities. Many famous and well known names were assassinated
during those days. From France, Austria, Spain, and many more countries
people had assassinated. The heart wrenching incidents of the late 19th
century were included the assassination of Austria’s Queen along with
the brutal murder of Spanish PM. At the dawn of the 20th century, if we
examine the agendas of the politicians, police, journalists, and
writers, terrorism was at the top of the list. In this light, the
current uptick in terrorist activities isn’t very alarming.
*** Conclusion
This research examines the conceptual basis of anarchists and how
postmodernism fueled their flame. Anarchism revolves mostly on a single
objective, which is that they oppose the state or the establishment of
state borders in the first place. The state and all other international
institutions arose as a result of Hegel’s logical approach. From
institutions to everything else, the postmodernists repudiated that
reality in every way. Anarchism expanded on this idea and began to
reject the existence of a state. There are certain similarities between
the ways in which the postmodernists and anarchists deny reality.
Multiple terror-based centrifugal movements, such as ISIS, Al-Qaida,
etc., were born out of anarchism. There was no regard for international
institutions when these organizations began their campaign throughout
the world, following the lead of their postmodern and anarchist masters.
In the above-mentioned literature, and more specifically in Nietzsche’s
context, the philosophical and epistemological basis of anarchism is
quite evident. Anarchists’ atrocities over different periods of history
are the subject matter of the final section of this inquiry. Numerous
examples of anarchists’ violent actions show how active this movement
is.
This study deals with the Anarchists’ philosophical background and how
Postmodernism fanned it. Anarchism’s approach mainly whirls around a
single point agenda, and that is, they are against the state or
existence of states’ borders. I mention again what Researcher has
already mentioned, the state and all other international institutions emerged
after a rational approach as stated by Hegel. Postmodernism denied that
reality in of every contour whether those are institutions or anything
else. Anarchism brought this concept into a broader paradigm and started
denying the existence of the state. So, both postmodernists and
anarchists have denied the reality in their own capacities, but the
grounds and arguments are the same. The anarchism paved the way for
multiple active terrors based centrifugal movements throughout the
world, i.e., The ISIS, The AL-QAEDA, etc. These groups started their
campaign around the world and ignored all the international institutions
that followed the footings of their postmodern and anarchists masters.
The philosophical and epistemological background of anarchism is very
explicit from the above stated literature, and more precisely in
Nietzsche’s context. The ending part of this question deals with the
atrocious activities of the anarchists during different hours of the
history. There are ample cases in which the anarchists have carried out
their brutal activities, which portray how active this movement is.
This study will diagnose and will try to detect the links between
postmodern philosopher Nietzsche and anarchism. We will also make this
thing clear that whether this entente between the two is a direct one or
it exists in an unconscious form. Simple as that, the main objective of
this part is to demonstrate the existence of links between Anarchists’
values and Nietzsche’s work. Finding these ties between the two isn’t
possible without following the analogical method in order to compare
Nietzsche’s philosophy and the epistemological paradigm established by
him with that of the Anarchists. It can be seen that Nietzsche was a
stern opponent of anarchism but still, his words matter. Despite the
fact that he has denounced anarchism but his blunt writing has paved the
way for such an active state denying movement. Simply we can say that
Nietzsche’s writings and his philosophy is compatible with anarchists’
postulates, aims, and sayings. We have a few points where Nietzsche has
accused, denounced, and alleged the anarchists. But at the same time,
Nietzsche has alienated himself from reality seekers, too. This dual nature of his philosophy puts one in an
imbroglio. Oscillating in limbo after studying Nietzsche is natural
thing. But the dominancy of his pro-anarchists’ writings makes it doable
to put him in faction and calibrators of the anarchism. His philosophy
of “God is dead” and the concept of “superman” both is actually denying reality in their own capacities. Denying or ignoring reality is the point of compatibility between postmodernists and especially Nietzsche and Anarchists.
*Shaukat, Fakhr ul Munir and Muhammad Hamza*
*** References
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Shaukat, Department of Political Science, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, KP, Pakistan.
Fakhr ul Munir, Demonstrator, Department of Political Science, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, KP, Pakistan.
Muhammad Hamza, M.Phil. Scholar, Department of Political Science, GC University,
Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan.