The liberal-democratic death drive: A political economy of affective compulsion
Thesis Eleven: Critical Theory and Historical Sociology
Published online on February 27, 2026
Abstract
Thesis Eleven, Ahead of Print.
This article provides a psychoanalytic–materialist critique of liberal democracy. It argues that the failures of liberalism are structurally necessary, founded in property, ideology and affect. Liberalism survives through the ritualisation of deferral, ...
This article provides a psychoanalytic–materialist critique of liberal democracy. It argues that the failures of liberalism are structurally necessary, founded in property, ideology and affect. Liberalism survives through the ritualisation of deferral, ...