Tanzquartier Wien

With the resurgence of right-wing populism, the so-called “cultural left” has become the focus of criticism. It is said to have directed its focus for too long on categories like race, sex and gender, neglecting social problems in the process. This would suggest that the problem could be solved by putting renewed emphasis on the concept of “class”. However, the problem runs deeper than that: it lies in the fact that class and social standing, conflicts of distribution and recognition are separated from one another as if by a rift. This has led to the specific problem remaining unconsidered for such a long time of those people so many of whom have given their votes to right-wing populists: the “threatened majorities” (Ivan Krastev) and, especially in the USA, the white men (and women) who are relegated or are threatened by relegation. The lecture examines this rift and intends to show how the specific “rage” of many white men can be understood and properly addressed by politicians simply by a parallactic consideration (in Slavoj Žižek’s sense) of class and social standing/recognition.