11 Communists Without Communism?
Jacques Ronciére
‘What ave 1 sy quit simple and you wil probably find simpli
But ifwe are requested tome fesh sense of the word ‘commana we
in veo revtage se very simple ise and taken account some
sey tipl act The at fac, 1 ink tt we ave take nt account
isthe lowing? comes i ot aly the name flare movements
ed nimous vate powers of the pst, kin na lelvaver or cured mane
thar we chwld have he sss apr tank orev. ‘Commnist
iethe mme ofthe party tat rule over the most popelow nation and
ve of mnt pronpero capital powers today. Th inkage Been
Communism aust ate domination and api shold ot be ee
tuto te rope of ellecton on what commana may ean di
‘My owe reflection hore wl tar rom a simple armen ht 1 oand
inaninerow gven by Asin Baton o Laman the newspaper the
French Commas Par: “The conmmunst pothesis i the hyporess
sfomarriginn’ Aa Understand mean thatthe sigieain ofthe
‘Tord communi’ iis to practice of emsnipton. Communi
Ita fon of univeraliyconstrcted by those practices Letrey agree
‘ith statment Now the oie to know what ‘emancipation’ mean.
In onder vo deine sh ea of communism chat tipi.
oc tarpesingy {il tart rm what in my vr the mont ons
ad povetlden oemancpation the ea formule bythe thinker of
intelecelemancipton, Joep Jacl. Emancipation isthe way obt
station f minor. A station of mingriy in situation in which
ohare fo ude becaie Flowing the path wih your own sese of
‘iecn would ead you any. the ogi ofthe pagal process
which the schoclauer tars from the station af ignorance hich x
that fhe stent and progressively replaces ignorance by known,
is knw, and progressively takes the tena fram station
‘Fiegualiy toed hi her Yow’ uation fui His also
thelopeof Enlghenmen in wich thecalated ites havea gid thejevornt ad spertos lower ae in he pth af roges Thi i
‘Iota, the ways infinte reproduction of inguin the mame
‘a aromise of sqully. The proces leading the greet sence ted
the lower clases to the maser Heo eplicon progres predicted
inte onthe gp arparting the inteligence of th mater fr th imal
gene of the gor. What sparse the rst fom the second ie
sinply the knowledge of ignorance. This i the imgaltaran rece
Te oppose he egalitarian maxim, can by sumed up in te pin
ples: ny, equality not a goa is sating pins an opinion or =
‘Prenppenion which opens the ldo «posse verifcaton Sond
Inaligence ot vided, its oe rina theftligeee of the mast
the ineligece ofthe stndeny, the inligece oh eile othe
imeligence of th artisan Instead te ligenc hat don ot
Etany spec potion in = social oder bat belongs to anybody as the
inligence of aybody, Emancipation ten tena the sporoprition ot
‘hs ingen which one, and he vercation of he pte ote
ely of neligenes a
“The wy’ ou of the pedagoscal presupposiion (cht thee are oso
sors of neligece) ental «way ou of the vocal logic ofthe di
tnton of poston as haa born formulated a Plato Repu by way
cf io stents shot wy the areas ave td thi own job end
thing cherry because wor doce nt wa, econ bcs he
lags aggregation gorered
by laws af sci gravitons tthe nw of peal preva
Anybory can be anced and cnancpte er pros that Ie
violet mankind be masa cance india Baa ace coa
sever remand
“This no only the perma conviction ofa maverick indivi. Nor
is ira nee question o opposing india emancipation oelleive
nancpation The queionis how cantheallecevnanel theca
Fanboy cine withthe goal nganation ofa race? Hoo cxa
the anarchic principle emancipation bona the pil af sca
Skribron of task potions al power? Is abt tne ik
“ferent this problem from se worn-out vermont on portant aad
‘rgatntin, Emancipation cetsinly mean oder, besser
‘ss soingspottaenur about Comes orantaon may oly
‘nen the omnes practnlexining arms fun acing
‘What edie emancipation may mean peared be» pee
foc thou wh nthe centr of Jac, totes commun
‘elon ike Cato spl communi parts ike Mary and Engels
Common common ike hela cmmunity le by Cabin
the Uni ttn ld They dle fl ane pion gees nee
inva coul ot obi oe common spine. One contr,
they aden commani copay could net be peated. The
sharing ofthe eps ayo cold ot be ned it he imu
‘ke priate common man The femjoy of emancipation -T mean
the temporaliy ofthe eplraton af tlleive power could not cote
‘ide wits the tna of an rgeniand soci ing to everyone i
{her fino. Other onmne rosin hem id much ber Ta
‘ison ftir ces tha hey er nt made up af communis
‘hey mite made wp of men and women obeying religous di
But th eran common was mae up of omnunist Therefore hecommunism of this community was pli rom the outst into eo parts
2 communist organization of everyday lie ruled by the Father of the
Community and an egalitarian anembly embodying the communi of
the communists, er all « communist worker is « worker asserting
his capacity 2 all snd to make laws about common afr intend of
merely doing his own jb sa useul worker. We mn bear in mind tha
this problem had been sorted out very long ago in Plato's Republi for
Plate, workers, meaning the people with iro souls, cannot be em
sit only the legislators who have gold in their sul can and must kt
(0 of material gold and live, az communists onthe production of
Communist worker. In such away the Republic canbe propedly defined
te the power of communists over workers. Iran old souton, butt til
works inthe case of the communist tate I mentioned erle, with the
help af a sold troop of guaedia
Cabet had no guardians a ll As for Marx and Engels they decided
to disband the Communist Party they had created and to wait forthe
cvoltion ofthe preduetve forces o produce true communist prota
Jans ~ inscad of those ily ser who thought they were ther uals
though they didnot catch anything of thei theory. Communitn they
ssid is noc the gathering of emancipated individuals attempting to expe-
Fience collective life ssa response 0 elas or ijutice Ie the Fall
Jimplementation ofa form of universality already at work inthe capitals
‘xganiation of production and the bourses organization of forms of
Wi. af a colatve rational power alten eating. in the Korma
contrary: the pascularty of private intereata The collective forces of
‘communinm already existed. What was needed was nlythe form of thee
collective and subjective reappropeaton
The only problem was ofcourse the oly ital. But, az we now, the
lic could be oversuened, thanks to two axioms. Firstly there is 2