Pocock, Foucault, Forces of Reassurance

Author(s): William S. Corlett, Jr.

Source: Political Theory, Vol. 17, No. 1 (Feb., 1989), pp. 77-100
Published by: Sage Publications, Inc.
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/191564 .
Accessed: 09/05/2014 16:17

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .
http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.
JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of
content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms
of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.

Sage Publications, Inc. is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Political Theory.

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 POCOCK, FOUCAULT, FORCES
OF REASSURANCE

WILLIAMS. CORLETT, Jr.

Bates College

One cannotsteptwiceintothesameriver,norcan one graspanymortalsubstance

in a stablecondition,butitscattersand againgathers;itformsand dissolves,and
approachesand departs-Heraclitus.
Play is alwaysplayofabsenceand presence,butifone wishesto thinkitradically,
one mustthinkit beforethealternativeofpresenceand absence;itis necessaryto
thinkof Beingas presenceor absencefromthepossibilityofplayon, and notthe
otherwayaround-Derrida.

The principle of hegemonyis a continual source of political

conversationsthatdo not seem to lead anywhere.Dead-end conver-
sationsabout powerrelationsusuallyreducepoliticalpossibility to one
side lordingitsvictoriesovertheother,forthetimebeing.That is, to
conservethemorepowerfulcultures,states,classes,groups,etc.,is to
continuethe subjectionof theirweakercounterparts, some of which
mayintimeaspireonlyto reversethebalanceofpowerinquestion.This
essay suggestshow one might,by assuminga criticalperspective,
supplement conservativeand someradicaltheoriesduringthemoments
at whichtheydisagreeabout whichhegemonicpatternsto maintain
acrosstime.I wish,forexample,to supplementsuchpositionsas those
whichurge nation-states to conservetheirtraditionsin the name of
nationalsecurity, and thebourgeoissubjectto investin politicalforms
of lifeinsurance.
Insteadofbeingsupplemented bynewexperiments inlanguage,such
conservative patternmaintenance is oftenonlycounteredbycompeting

A UTHOR'S NOTE: Iwish to thankTracyStrong,WilliamConnolly,and an anonymous

reviewer
for helpfulcommentson earlierdraftsof thisessay. The earliestversionwas
supported,inpart,byan NEH grantto attendtheunsettlingsummerseminarConnolly
conductedin 1984.

POLITICAL THEORY, Vol. 17 No. 1, February198977-100

o 1989Sage Publications,Inc.

77

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
78 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

alternatives.Popular examples of this include workingto disrupt

continuity inhistorybycriticizing traditionalismorevenbydismantling
thesubjectofconsciousness.But thepoliticsof"now" generationsand
"sub-individuals"oftenrepresentslittlemore than shiftsin various
overlappingbalances of power.Whilecriticalof facingthe maliceof
timewithcollectivestrength at theexpenseof individualdiversity (or
individualstrength at the expenseof sub-individualistic multiplicity),
alternativetheories,evenradicaltheories, areusuallycontentto attempt
mere reversals,to face the malice of time with the "other" of the
conservative formulation.Butwhether a textinpoliticaltheoryreminds
one oftheworkof a Burkeor of a Foucaultis a questionthatdoes not
beginto criticizetheprincipleof hegemonythatunderliestheidea of
balancingpower.To supplement conversations acrossconservative and
radicalperspectives requiresaskinghowitis possibleto thinkin binary
termsin thefirstplace.
To reducepoliticalpossibilityto binaryoppositionrequireshaving
faith in unities beneath the rich diversityof everydaylife. The
persistence ofunityin anyformreassuresthosewhotakeitseriously,in
thesensethatitpermitssufficient orderforthemto thinksolelyinterms
of polar opposites.This is because thinkingsolelyin termsof polar
oppositesrequiresthatone allowtheextremesofcontinuato signify the
rangesof politicalpossibility.This assumptionallows one to forget
about the forces of madness, oblivion, delusion, accident,chaos,
becausetheseelementsofirrationality cannotfindplacesalongthelines
on anycontinuum.Once reassuredbythisassumption,theprincipleof
hegemonyis simplya matteroftakingsidesnearoneextreme, theother,
or both. A politicaldiscoursethatseeksto supplementconservatism,
withoutposing merelyas its opposite,cannotrelyeven on temporal
unity,cannotcontinueto reassurepractitioners ofitsnaturalrightness,
mustinsteadcreateits own possibilities.At leastthisis thepretenseI
wishto entertain here.
Anypoliticsthatis unencumbered byweighty metaphysical concerns
mustpostponequestionsof pure ideality,transcendental deductions,
absolutetruth,and so on, but thisneed not includestoppingto make
sense. I wishto suggestonlythatwhileengagingin sufficient de facto
sense-makingto survive,one mustalso confessthatin principle"the
fairestorderin theworldis a heap ofrandomsweepings."'Givinginto
the play of the worldmight"supplement"its variousorders,but this
mighthappenonlyifsuchextravaganceis notposed as theoppositeof
reason and order.One must,it seems,eitherrejectthereassuranceof

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett/ FORCES OF REASSURANCE 79

thinking alongthelinesofcontinuaor continuethehabitofthinking in

binaryterms.
NormanJacobson,playingperhapsto its worstinclinations,once
describedpoliticaltheoryas a "vocationworthyofgiants,"who rescue
human subjects (sometimeseach other) fromtheir most abysmal
thoughts,or at leastfromfacingthemalone.2Deployinga continuumis
a tried and true rescue maneuver.3The most reassuringfeatureof
continuumis that it names a "series."4There are at least three
approachesto thecontinuum:(1) to declarecontinuity mootin a pure
worldofimmutableideality;5 (2) todeclarecontinuity possibleinworlds
reassuredby immanence;6 (3) to declare continuity impossiblein the
chaoticworldofflUX.7 It is as difficult to adopt eitherthefirstor third
approachuncritically as itis tempting to adopttheseconduncritically.
The presumption ofimmanenceis a habitofthemind,especiallyin our
time.Thisessayis an attemptto drawattention to thesubtleinfluence of
thecontinuum,as illustratedby one of themostpersistent unities:the
notionof lineartime.8My attemptshould indicatehow the firstand
thirdapproachesto thecontinuumdo notconstitute extremeopposites.
The terms,immanenceand transcendence,circulate widely in
politicaldiscourseand can be used to distinguish variousperspectives
on social time.The principleoftranscendence, whenusedto signify the
divorceofuniversalsandparticulars, can neverlead totheestablishment
of elapsing time continua. Wholly particularisticmomentsshare
nothingin common. Immanence,however,can name a unityof
universalsand particulars,a unitythat allows all momentson an
elapsingtimecontinuumto share temporality (more or less elapsed
time).9Saying that all points on an elapsingtimecontinuumshare
temporality, ormoreorlesselapsedtime,requiresmakingtwodifferent
theoreticalmoves:(1) reducingall of infinitemystery to beingeither
whollytimeless(transcendent above particulars)or else immanentand
(2) eliminating thewhollytimelessfromconsideration.This reduction
and eliminationpermitthereassurancethattimeelapses,flowslike a
riverfrompast to future.'0My task in thisessay is to show how this
theoreticalmotiondoes itsworkin typicaltextsin politicaltheory.
First,to illustrate
thewidespreadinfluence ofthistheoreticalmotion,
I shall attemptto establishitspresencein a well-knownmodeldrawn
fromthehistoryof politicalthought,The modelis theworkof J.G.A.
Pocock, whose writingon politics, language, and the time lends
structure to theradicaldivorceofuniversalsand particulars.I wantto
work withPocock because of his breathtaking generality.His work

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
80 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

covers (or speaks for) many radical and conservativeperspectives.

Pocock's model of traditionalism and its criticscan explain so many
approachesto social timebecausehejuxtaposestheradicalcreationof
withtheusual transmission
politicalpossibilities ofpoliticalprinciples.
But, althoughtheseforceshelp to explain how historicalcontinuities
can be brokenas well as maintained,Pocock's model is limitedby
presupposingan elapsingtimecontinuum."I
Second,I shallillustrate
howa textthatworksconscientiously, inan
outright rejectionofmetaphysics,to undermine continuity can embrace
thecontinuity ofelapsingtime.I wishto workwithFoucaultbecausehis
name is often associated with postmodernrejectionof the work
Pocock's model helps to explain. Foucault's workexperimentswith
disruption,dismantling, discontinuity.The essayI wishto examine-
"Nietzsche,Genealogy,History"-is inmanysensesa condemnationof
continuity.One mightexpect Foucault's essay to deploy ranks of
counter-memory againstconventionalformsoftime:"It is a questionof
givinghistorya counter-memory,-and consequentlyofunfolding in it
a whollyotherformoftime"(167/160).Thesewordsdrawa newformof
timeintotheirsights,butthetextnevertheless reassuresbecauseit also
containswordsthatbetrayanyintention to disrupt.Thisis perhapsbest
shownbytracingthemovementofFoucault'sclaim,usingthelanguage
of Pocock's model. Afterstudyinghow theseratherdiversetheorists
sometimesresembleeachother,I shallconsiderhowtheirworkmightbe
supplemented.

II

To coveras manycases oftraditionalismand alternatives

as possible,
Pocock builds his model by experimenting withwhathe calls "para-
language."'2 Pocock describesthis model as a matrixwithinwhich
traditionsare givenformand thenpushedout intotheworldas history
(239-40).13Thefollowingsentenceis especiallyclearaboutthestructure
and motionof thetext:

A society's institutions,it is clear, may be eitherconsolidated or discrete,

homogeneousor various;it mayinheritdialogue,dialecticor conflictbetweenits
traditions,and the impulse to replace tradition,firstwith anotherimage of
normativeaction and secondlywithhistoryas the vision of interplaybetween
modesof action,mayarisefromwithintheinheritance. (241) (emphasisadded)

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 81

Afterthewaysinwhichinstitutions mayvary(all wordsto theleftofthe

semicolon)are stated,fourpossibilitiesappear: (1) pure and simple
traditions(discussed237-241);(2) societiesmight"inherit"competing
traditionsand nontraditions, or ideology(discussed241-253);(3) from
within"inheritance" theremightarise an impulseto replacetradition
with anotherimage of normativeaction, or pure, objectivehisto-
riography(discussed253-269);and (4) fromwithin"inheritance," but
onlyaftertheantitraditionalist voicesare singing,theremightarisean
impulseto replace traditionwithhistory(discussed253-272). These
possibilitiesare developed systematically in a seriesof movements.
Pocock beginsbyrejecting pureand simpletraditionas theprototype of
traditionalism.He uses itinsteadas a place to beginraisingtheissueof
transmitting an inheritanceacrosstime.The crucialmaneuverrequires
forcinga binaryoppositionbetweentimeboundand timelesscon-
siderations.Withthisdistinction firmlyinplace,Pocock nexteliminates
whollynonsecularitemsfromhis agenda bygrantinghegemonyto the
timebound"side." Finally,thisone-sidednessis made manifestbythe
birthof history.

Step 1: RejectingPure Tradition

In itspureand simpleusage,traditionnames"an indefinite seriesof

repetitionsofan action"(237). Each particularrepetition is attendedby
"the knowledge,or the assumption,of previousperformance" (237).
Becausepreviousperformance needonlybe "assumed"and becausethe
seriesofrepetitionsis "indefinite,"
thequestionoforiginis neverraised.
Rather,simpletraditionsare "immemorial."Pocock providesa hypo-
theticalexample of a simple kinshipsocietyin whicheverything is
learnedfromthe"fathers"beforethe shrinesof vague ancestors.The
mode of action,or characteristic practice,embeddedin thiskind of
traditionalismis"transmission" (239). Transmission is,evenatthisearly
stage, one of the model's twin forcesof reassurance.This will not
change.
But Pocock is interestedin pure and simple traditiononly as a
startingpoint, a seed to place in the "matrix"awaitingthe "con-
ceptualization"of tradition.He wantsto show "whathappenswhena
societyformsan image of itselfas a constanttransmission of waysof
livingand behaving"(239) and, morecomplexly,he is curiousabout
whenthisimageis and is not a strictly traditionalform.'4

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
82 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

Step 2: Forcingthe Timebound-

TimelessDistinction

The logic ofthemodel'sdevelopmentis relatedto language.Pocock

presentsthe process of givinga traditionconceptual form-"con-
ceptualization"-as a processthathas "a logic of its own" (241).15He
wishesto show how ideas about timefollow"causally"fromthe way
language is used.'6 His text stressesthat "images and conceptsof a
nontraditionalistkindmayarisefromcauseslyingwithintheprocessof
givinga traditionconceptualform"(241). That is,withintheprocessof
formingtraditionas a concept, there are "causes" that result in
nontraditional concepts.
The major cause of nontraditionalconcepts withinthe logic of
conceptualization is a timebound-timelesspolarity.The textforcesthis
distinctionupon the reader.Pocock firstnotes that not all societies
consider inheritancefroman immemorialpast theirsole mode of
reception.'7Some societies,afterall, are not contentto "presume"
continuityand actuallyseek to establishcontinuity withthe past by
locatinga mythicalor sacred "origin"there.But stillothersocieties
place thisoriginoutsideoftimealtogether.'8 Pocock could allow these
threenotions-being out of timealtogether,havingsacredoriginsand
immemorial of
continuity-asindications beingtimebound, timelessas
sacred,and outoftimeall together.Butinsteadhe writesthefollowing:

continuity,
To describea timelessexistence,a sacredoriginor an immemorial are
all waysofconceptualisingthecontinuousexistenceofsociety.The moreprecisely
we imaginesocietyas a seriesofconcretehumanactionsintime,and timeinterms
of thesequenceof suchactions,themorewe seemto moveaway fromimagining
societyin termsof thesacred,as our use of thewords"temporal"and "secular"
indicates.(242) (emphasisadded)

Readersmustnotmissthatthe"beingoutoftimealtogether"-"timeless"
distinctionhas been collapsed, and both elementsare now called
timelessin thesacredsense.This "sacred"imaginingis thencontrasted
withthe"secular"idea ofbeingtimebound.In otherwords,immanence
has now been distinguished fromtranscendence.'9
polaritypermitsPocock todistinguish
The time-timeless institutional
(immanent)fromsacred(transcendent) time.Locatingan originfora
traditionis, bydefinition,
locatingan authoritywithoutan antecedent
tradition.Hence thetimelessside oftime-consciousnessleads thinking
away fromtraditionand toward what Pocock wishesto call "cha-
risma."20If timeis viewedin the institutional
way,the charismaticis

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 83

simplyoutsidetraditionand is worshippedas a sacredorigin.Buttime

can also be viewedas a "sequence"ofcharismaticacts,in whichcase "a
newvisionoftimemaybe constructed in termsofmomentsofcreation
ratherthan momentsof transmission" (243). This is how thetimeless
side of time-consciousness causes a visionof timeas creation,rather
than the transmission caused by the timeboundside. Creation,then,
joins transmission(thefirstforceofreassurance)as thesecondforceof
reassurance.In Pocock's modeltheyconstitutea dialectic-a dialectic
caused by the arbitraryimpositionof a timebound-timeless dis-
tinction-thatgrowsovertimeinto a complexviewof history,which
therebyretainselementsof both.
One effect,then,ofthedualistictime-consciousness embeddedinthe
conceptualizationprocessis thattheformgivento traditionis divided
againstitself."Withintraditiontherewill be a dialogue betweenthe
nontraditionalistand traditionalist voiceswithwhichit speaks"(244).
Pocock feels that this "dialogue" mightalso appear as "conflict"or
"contradiction" andcontinuesfollowing the"logic"ofconceptualization
he has started,bymappingsome of itscomplexity.2'

Step 3: EliminatingTranscendence

Pocock opens the thirdmovementhintingthateventuallyhe will

presenthistoryas a criticismof tradition,but thisdoes not happen
duringthismovement.Instead"conversation"withintraditionbuilds
up to a point of sufficient complexityto allow disagreement among
partiesabout therelationofpastto present.Ofcourseforconversation
to be possibleall partiesmustsharecommonmeaningsmadepossibleby
Butbecausetheelapsingtimecontinuum
literacy.22 is notyetsufficiently
entrenched, because some moments-such as myth,charisma,sacred
stories-cannotbe discussedintermsofelapsedtime,notall partiesare
yettalkingin termsofinstitutional time.This sectionofPocock's essay
works to entrenchthe elapsing time continuumand then builds
complexityintothesecularconversation.
Pocock remarksthatthevoicesthatwouldperpetuatetheauthority
of the presentare not likelyto welcomethe classicist's"definitive"
version of past texts. This is because writtenwords are politically
unreliable.Words"cut acrosstheprocessesoftransmission and create
new patternsof social time;theyspeak directto remotegenerations,
whose interpretation of them may differfromthat of intervening
transmitters of the traditiontheyexpress" (255).23In other words,

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
84 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

because no writercan controlthemeaningofwordsin thosetextss/he

undersigns, everyreaderis a potentialradical(255).
The criticalquestionis whetherinformation aboutthepastoughtto
be collected and agreed upon independentlyof its impact on the
authority ofthepresent.Pocock's pointis thattheimpulseto do so can
ariseamongradicalsand classicistsonlywithina literatetradition.He is
nowpreparedto showthat,inliteratesociety,thetransmission-creation
polarityofthefirsttwomovements undergoesa sortofmetamorphosis.
Recall thatitsorigininthetimeless-timebound distinctionled Pocock to
juxtapose transmission withcharismato emphasizethe sacrednessof
the timeless.Being out of timealtogetherwas eliminatedarbitrarily.
Now, in literatesocieties,even the sacred timelessnessof charisma
(whichis definedin termsofitsother),or transcendence, is completely
eclipsed.The transmission-creation distinctionliveson, however,in a
differentform.Pocock writes:

Since whatwe areconcernedwithis history, thelightin questionmustbe thatofa

commontemporalcontext,24 and itshouldthereforeseem-at leastprimafacie-
thatit will be hard to constructa historiographywherethe dominantmode of
authorityis and remainssacred.(258) (emphasisadded)

Withthisdevelopment, timeas a continuum(elapsingtime)becomes

firmlyentrenched.First, immanencewas distinguishedfromtran-
scendenceas primordialchaos was banished arbitrarily, now tran-
scendenceis eclipsed. This state of affairsmoves the elapsingtime
continuum(with its presuppositionof immanence)to a positionof
hegemony.Conversationis now forced to move up and down a
continuumof elapsed time,but does so in such a varietyof waysthat
discontinuityis the name of the game. The pages that immediately
followin Pocock's testillustratesome of theplaypossible.

Step 4: GivingBirthto History

Readersmayrecallthatearlierinthetext(241) Pocock promisedthat

historywouldemergefromhismatrix:"historyas thevisionofinterplay
betweenmodes of action[transmission and creation]may arisefrom
withinthe inheritance" (241). Well, thetextis about to come intoits
inheritance.Historyis theconservative'sstrategy forsavingfacein the
presenceofclassicistand radicalothers.One who resembledOakeshott
could veneratehistorywithoutdemandingthatit make sense.Pocock

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 85

prefersto taketheplayofcomplexoverlapmoreseriouslyand to treat

historyas anotherselfthatmightbe said to be perpetually explored.25
Some theoristsfindinspirationinthisplea to havea past.26The pointof
Pocock's modelisthatthisotherselfemergesfroman inheritance within
theformthatgivesthesecular(timebound)worldhegemonyoverthe
timeless.27

III

Pocock's modelofhistoricgrowthovertimecan be reduced(withno

negligibleviolence)to thedifferencebetweenmaintaining theauthority
of the past over the present(conservatism)and questioningit (radi-
calism).The absenceorpresenceofa coherentunderstanding ofthepast
plays an integralrole in this difference.In many cases, in literate
infavorofmaintaining
societies,speech-acts theauthority ofthepresent
are attendedbya denialoftherelevanceofa detailedpast.Thesevoices
"presume"thatthe past authorizesthe presentand do not ask thatit
makesense.On theotherhand,inmanyothercases inliteratesocieties,
speech-actsin favorof questioningthe authorityof the presentare
attendedbyinsistenceon therelevanceofa detailedpast.These voices
showhow memorycan undermine thepresent.In Pocock's memorable
words,"The radical reconstructs the past in orderto authorizethe
future;he historicisesthe presentin orderto depriveit of authority"
(261).
That Pocock presumestime's continuouspassage is most easily
shownbyapplyinghismodelto thetextthatpresentsit.Thatis,Pocock
deliversa model thatcan describeboth transmissionand creationof
traditions,buthistextis preoccupiedwiththetransmission ofelapsing
time.Pocock's model-fromtheoriginary time-timelessdistinction,to
theprimitive transmission-creation to themetamorphosed
distinction,
transmission-creationdistinction-culminates bylocatingwithinhistory
the binaryoppositionbetweentraditionaland antitraditional voices.
Usingparalanguage,Pocock is sayingthathistoryis traditionand its
other(or criticismofit).28 Butifone attemptsa perspectivethatis even
moregeneralthanPocock's experiment withparalanguageand applies
the Pocock model to the Pocock text,it becomesclear that Pocock
considerstimeonlyas an inheritance fromthepast.Put simply,heis not
concernedwithcreativeexperimentation withthelanguageoftime.

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
86 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

In otherwords,Pocock's laborsdo notincludefacingtheexcessthat

in the name of polar distinctions
is eclipsedarbitrarily at the level of
paralanguage.In thelanguageofPocock's model,Pocock's text,which
can explain both "presumptivetraditionand radical denial of the
relevanceof the past," represents"presumptive tradition"exclusively
whencomingto termswiththepassageoftime.Thisrepresentation is so
subtle that it is nearly invisible.While tellingthe story of how
immanencegainedhegemonyin itsrelationto transcendence, Pocock
drawsthereader'sattentionawayfromAboriginaldreams,Heraclitean
flux,Ovidianchaos, as ifto erase(or at leastto cast intooblivion)any
elementthatcannotbe classifiedin termsofuniversalsand particulars.
By exercisingthe silentpower of presumption,his workpermitsthe
forcesof reassuranceto becomeentrenched.

IV

In a well-known essay,Derridaexplainsa sensein whichFoucaultis

naiveabout temporalization.29 Foucault,he claims,does notworkat a
sufficientlygenerallevelofanalysisto escape uncritically
presupposing
thecontinuity oftime.Thatis,hecannotimagineexcessesthatcannotin
principlebe capturedbythetime-timeless distinction.
Insteadofjoining
in theplay of theparadox, "thetimebeforefirst,"30 Foucault plays a
safer role-creator-in the reassuringmodel of transmissionand
creationofprinciplesalong a lineoftime.31 He assumesthisrolein his
celebratedessay,"Nietzsche,Genealogy,History."32
To use the"paralanguage"ofPocock's model,Foucaultrejectspure
and simpletraditions(section1); distinguishestimelessand timebound
approaches (section2); eliminatestranscendence(sections34); and
advances a view of history(sections5-7) thatresemblesthe"radical"
strainof Pocock's morecomplexvarietyof history.Concentrating on
thethirdstepofthePocock model-the elimination oftranscendence-
I wish to show how Foucault also reassuresreaders of unityby
presupposingthatall timeboundeventssharetheuniversalqualityof
temporality. This presumptionof immanencedeliversto Foucault an
elapsingtimecontinuumthatrangesfroman elapsedpastto a present,
whichsurgesforthintothenotyetspentfuture;in otherwords,timeis
conceivedas a seriesof events.33

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 87

Step 1: RejectingPure Tradition

Accordingto Foucault,genealogymustavoid studyingeventsas if

theycame intobeingin a linearfashion("geneseslineaires"(145/139))
and insteadmustrecordeach outcomein itssingularity ("la singularite
des evenements"(145/139)). Even areas oflifewhichone mightfeelare
withouthistory,outsidetime(such as love, conscience,instincts)are
timeboundevents,or outcomes,forFoucault.Sayingthateventsdo not
come intobeingin a linearfashiondoes not,then,commitFoucaultto
abandoning the notion of being timebound.But this does require
genealogyto oppose itselfto investigating the so-called genesis of
"origins"(146/140). Foucault places originein quotes because the
second section attemptsto recovera (less haughty)usage that is
consistentwithgenealogy.

Step 2: Forcingthe Timebound-

TimelessDistinction

Section two imposesthe same timebound-timeless distinctionthat

Pocock's modelreliesupon to distinguish twodifferent
kindsoforigin,
"haut" and "bas." High and mighty("haut') originscome beforethe
worldand time,"avantle mondeetle temps"(149/143).34ButFoucault
does not imaginea primordialchaos withoutbounds and timeless-
timeboundpolarities;rather,like Pocock, he assumessuch polarities
and equatesbeingbeforetimewithbeingtimelessness in a sacredsense.
Hence the "haughty"originwhichcomes beforetimeis forcedto be
sacred("estdu cotedes dieux"(149/143))becauseitis notprofane.35 On
the otherhand, of course, the historicaldebut ("le commencement
historique')is lowly,base, vile("bas').36
Genealogists,then,focuson theopposite-the other-"side" of the
idealityof theorigin.Theirresearchworldsare whollyparticularistic,
allegedlydevoidofcontinuity. Theyusehistoryto signifybecoming.We
mustread carefullyhere because the textcomes close to describing
historyas a Heracliteanstate of flux,as if to avoid the immanence
presupposedby lineartime afterall.37 Considerthe next to the last
sentencein sectiontwo:

History,withitsintensities,
lapses of memory,secretfuries,feverish,
syncopated
is theverybody of becoming.(150-1/145)
restlessness,

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
88 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

Historyis theverybody of becoming.Whilecomingbeforetimehas

been ridiculedas sacred and is thereforeanathemaforgenealogists,
thereis no evidenceinthefirsttwosectionsthatgenealogyis committed
to facingthe chaos of Heracliteanflux.38One mustask, then,how is
historybecomingforFoucault?How chaotic-or, alternatively, reas-
suring-is timeboundlife?Sectionsthreeand fourofhisessayofferat
leastpreliminary responsesto thesequestions.

Step 3: EliminatingTranscendence

Sectionthreeexaminesthefirstaspectofthelowlyoriginsstudiedby
genealogy:"la provenance,"or source(151/145).39Foucaultas geneal-
ogistwoulduncoverbase and vileancestorswhommanypeoplewould
liketo and otherwise
wouldforget.Myreadingofthissectionfocuseson
theextentto whichthispastis earlier,in thesenseofelapsedtime,than
the forgetfulpresent.I am also interestedin how completelythis
continuumis entrenched.
Accordingto thetext,genealogylocates,withinindividuals,senti-
ments,ideas, thehintof a chaoticnetworkthatis difficultto sortout.
Foucault describestheworkof a genealogistas beinga questionof

pinpointingthe many subtle, singular,sub-individualmarkingswhich can

crisscrossin them[individuals,sentiments,
ideas] and forma networkwhichis
difficult
to unravel.(151/145)40

Only a highand mightymetaphysician would attemptto findunityin

thesemultiple,crisscrossing, entangled"markings."The lowlyorigins
soughtby genealogyallegedlypermitonlydiscontinuity; theseorigins
permitonlytheseparationofeach entangledmarking,thedestruction,
not the reconstruction, of the network.And yet,in describingthis
destruction, Foucaultswitchesfromtheverbdemelerto debrouiller, the
latterwhichcan be used in thedouble senseof unravelling thatwhich
was criss-crossed and of drawingorderout of chaos.41As we continue
reading,thisdoublenessneverleavesthetext.
Later in the same paragraphreaderslearn that,due to genealogy
unravelling theentangledmarkers,swarmsofhitherto lost,nowstirred
up,"outcomes"("evenements')beginto multiply inprofusion.Foucault
is consistent,if arbitrary,
to associate marque and evenementin this
way; recallhis assertionin sectionone thatall individuals,sentiments,
and ideas,upon whichmarkingsare inscribed,are"outcomes"("evene-
ments').

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 89

To continue:theseoutcomesare themselvesnow makinghistoric

debuts.In otherwords,theoriginssoughtbygenealogyarecomingsout
("des commencements") that are themselvesoutcomes("milleevene-
ments").42In additionto stirringup lost events,then,genealogycan
ofeventsthatformedthese.
pinpoint("reperer')theearlierproliferation
This movementback in timeto earlieroutcomesis not intendedto be
continuous,and in manysensesis not,buta closereadingofFoucault's
suggestsa presuppositionof the elapsing
account of its discontinuity
timecontinuumthatsuperintends evenhis rejectionof linearhistory.
Consider:

To followthecomplexchannelsbackto wherewecamefrom,is ratherto allowthat

whichtook place in the originaldispersionto endure:this is to pinpointthe
accidents,the most vile acts of deviance-or on the contrarythe complete
reversals-themistakes,the lapses in judgement,the bad calculationsthatgave
birthto thatwhichcontinuesto existand havevalueforus; thisis to discoverthat,
nottruthand being,buttheforeignness ofaccidentis at therootofwhatwe know
and are. (152/146)

To say thatthereis an unevennessthatis foreignto us at the"root"of

whatwe are is perhapsunsettling to readerswhostilllongforhomesin
the world; but to say that much time has elapsed since our lowly,
blood-spattered,ancestralformscrept out of the sea is somewhat
reassuring(we need not face immediatelythe monstrosity of sliding
backin).43Please noticetwodifferent criticalmovementshere.First,the
violenceofnonmeaning has beenneutralizedbymakingthequestionof
our "roots"themostcriticalitemon theagenda.Second,withinworlds
of meaningthatcan be tracedto theseroots,thelowlyaccidents,etc.,
have been sequesteredas the "other," allowing the metaphysical
pretenseofthehour.Foucaultcalls genealogycriticalbecauseitdraws
outthe"other"(themad,thevile,thebase), making"veneration"ofthe
past impossible.We are dishonorableall thewayback to our roots.
But-and hereis thepoint-the firstcriticalmovement is eclipsedby
uncriticalacceptance of elapsed time. In this text the question of
neutralizingnonmeaningis immuneto criticism;in otherwords,the
questionofwhatkindofterritory thetimebound-timeless distinction is
imposedupon and whyanyoneshouldrestassuredthatsuchimposition
is sufficiently
totalitarianfortimeto be a riverwithinwhichone can
splashabout,foreventsto pass byas ifina series,forthereto be a "root"
("racine")to unearth,is neverplaced on Foucault'sagenda.Foucault's
textis governedby thatnondecision:To denythe past venerationis,
among otherthings,to presupposehavinga past. Only thispresup-

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
90 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

positioncan givethegenealogistthetimeittakesto stepintotheriverof

time(debrouiller)morethanonce.
To getto therootof theproblem,theunevenessexteriorto human
knowledgeand beingis, accordingto Foucault, an earlierpointon a
continuumof elapsingtime.The passage last citedabove movesfrom
originaldispersionto the birthof realityto contemporary hypocrisy
(Nietzschean Suchrelianceon an elapsingtimecontinuum
forgetfulness).
is quitea differentmatterthanrelianceon continuouslinearhistory.In
theremainderof thissectionFoucault uses thereassuringlanguageof
elapsingtimeto warnagainstembracing(evenbodily)continuity when
writinghistory.
Accordingto Foucault-or should I say Pocock?-our heritageis
dangerous in the sense that it is neithervenerable nor unitary.
"Dangereux heritageque celui qui nous est transmispar une telle
provenance"(152/146).Having a historyoffersno stability;in fact,it
undoesmostofthesecurity peoplerelyupon.44Butwhilethisparagraph
challengesthe securityof foundations,it is filledwith reassuring
(elapsingtime)wordslike"heritier" and "ancetres"(152-153/146-147).
The final(two)paragraphsinthissectionshowhowseriousFoucault
is about discontinuity. If whathas beenestablishedin thetextso faris
extended,noteventhebodycan existas a continuity. Foucault,as might
be expectedfromhis reputation,feedsbodies to the disremembering
facilitiesof "la provenance."The body carriesthe stigma of past
outcomes,whichwe havelearnedmustincludeall oftheleasthonorable
markings.But, assumingthe otherjanus-facedrole, the body also
carriesall desires,moralfailingsand errorintotheworld.In theabsence
ofcontinuity, thebodymustenduretheinsurmountable conflictofour
dangerousinheritance.Genealogy,by writingwherewe reallycame
from,tellsthestoryof historyruiningthebody(see 154/148).
By now it should be evidentthat the passage cited in the second
section-historyis theverybodyofbecoming-mustbe readliterally by
genealogy.Historyinscribesinterpretations of the past on bodies in
markingsthatthegenealogistmakes sense of. Of coursenone of this
marking-remarking is possiblewithouta flow-
(fathering-refathering?)
ingriverofelapsingtime.The moretimeelapses,themoreinscriptions
accumulate.But how totallyis humanitydominatedby its heritage?
How total is theeclipseof Heracliteanfluxwhenthistexteliminates
transcendence?
If sectionthreecan, withoutwillfuldistortion,representtheanalysis
of"evenements passes"-that is, everyeventto theleftofNOW on the

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett/ FORCES OF REASSURANCE 91

elapsingtimecontinuum-then,sectionfourcan represent thecoming

intoview,or surgingforth,ofevents,everything to therightofNOW on
the elapsing time continuum.45 "L'emergence"is for Foucault the
secondsenseofthelowlyoriginsstudiedbygenealogy.We can expectto
findan emphasison discontinuity, but mustkeep botheyes open for
evidenceoftheserenity oflapsingtime.For an earlyindication,thetext
juxtaposestheuninterrupted deniedby"la provenance"with
continuity
only the impossibilityof finality("le term fin'), ratherthan any
continuity whatsoever.More seriouslyperhaps,on thesametopicof"le
fin,"Foucault uses serie to describethe eventsstudiedby genealogy
("seried'asservissements"(I 54/148).Mytaskis to examinetheextentto
whichsuchlanguageof reassuranceis presentin thistext.
Here again theargumentmovesbycontrasting lowlygenealogyand
highand mighty metaphysics. Whereasmetaphysics pretends todiscover
continuity in the meaningof humanhistory,genealogyseeks onlyto
reestablish("r&tablit')multiplesystemsofsubjection.46 In otherwords,
genealogystudiestheplayofdomination.47 The waythetextworkswith
play resemblesthe way Pocock's model maps conversationsbetween
radicalspeech-actsand others.In bothtextsthepresenceofsystemsof
subjection("les diverssystemesd'asservissement') precedestheplayof
domination.48 Butwaitinginthewingsliestheunmistakable presenceof
an elapsing time continuum.The diverse systemsof bondage are
retrieved,bygenealogy;to use anotherword,theyare reestablished.49
Justas the verb"debrouiller"can be used at once to indicatethe
discontinuity ofcriticismand drawingorderout ofchaos,so Foucault
can continue writingabout discontinuity(rejectingcontinuityin
history)in thissection,whileusingwordsthat also reassurereaders
about the continuityof time'spassage. Anotherexamplecomes in a
passage (156/150)thatcontrasts"la provenance"and "l'emergence" as
thedifference betweendesignatingthequalityof an inscribedheritage
and designatingthe space withinwhichone eitherdominatesor is
dominated.There a contrastis drawnbetweenhavingbeen inscribed
upon bypasteventsand participating nowin an indefinite repetition
of
dominationand itsother.50
We nextencountera generalformof the same point.The passage
cited below shows that Foucault is preparedto apply the past-now-
futurecontinuumofelapsingtimeto thedevelopmentofall humanity;
to honorelapsingtimeis to becomehuman.Read forreassurance:

Humanitydoes not progressslowlyfromstruggleto struggleuntilreachinga

universalharmonyin whichlaws are substitutedonce and for all forwar; she

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
92 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

installseach of theseabuses of forcein a systemof laws, and advances in this

fashionfromdominationto domination.51

This passage illustratesFoucault's claim that there is no final

destinationto humanhistory;thisis the"surgingforth"(l'emergence)
side ofthe"wheredid we comefrom"(la provenance)claimthatthereis
no ultimateoriginoforigins.Butthispassage also illustrates myclaim
thatFoucault assumesthecontinuity oftime.Humanhistorydoes not
"progress"(progresser) fromprimordialchaos to universalreciprocity,
butthestruggles fordominationwhichmarkhumanhistory"advance"
(aller),one aftertheother,as ifin a series.Perhapsthepresumption of
immanencethatunderliestheelapsingtimecontinuumhelpsto setthe
stagefortheplayof domination.
But surelyone mustread too muchinto the letters("'va') to find
solace in such an unsettling, violentpassage as this.Would it not be
unfairto attributethe adjectivesereneto this emergence?Such an
interpretation is hardto resist,however,becausethetextis stillsurging
forthwithgenerality aboutbecominghuman("le devenirde l'humanite"
(158/151)).Foucault-who has alreadydecidedthat"history... is the
verybodyofbecoming"-now showsin one clause howthecontinuity
of humanhistorycan be rejectedin the languageof thecontinuity of
(elapsing) time: "becoming human is a series of interpretations"
(emphasisadded).52
Whileitis indisputablethatFoucaultdistinguishes thetimelessfrom
the timeboundand theneliminatesany idea owingto transcendence
(divorcingparticulars fromuniversals), thesametextcarriesevidenceof
uncriticalrelianceon a universalqualitysharedby all "evenements."
This unmentionedquality is temporality;withoutpresupposingit
Foucault would be unable to contrast"l'emergence"and "la prov-
enance,"unableto writeofbloodiedancestorsand theirunhappyheirs,
unable to use series to describethe movementof domination.The
doubleness of debrouillerannouncedearlieris drivenhome by the
presumption of immanence.

Step Four: EmergingRadical History

Sections five and seven can be read as a summationof this

doubleness. Section six is a mere illustrationof genealogy.The
tension-betweenvoices of metaphysicalcontinuityand genealogical
discontinuity-wehave been reading illustratesthe two forces of

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 93

reassuranceinPocock's model.To see howtheyreassure,becausethere

are manyways in whichgenealogyis unsettling, one need onlymove
alongsidethe alliance
intentional between Foucault andNietzschetothe
superintending motioninthetext. We have beenreadingtheserenity of
a primordial"debrouillement"that banishes chaos in the name of
polarities(such as the distinctionbetweenthe highlyand mightily
metaphysical and theprofanelypoliticallyradical).Foucault'screative
rewritingofthepast,usingtheployofcounter-memory, is radicalinthe
sensethatitundermines theauthority ofthe present, itis reassuring
but
thetotalityofthisbanishingact.
in thesensethatit acceptsuncritically
Beforerejecting contemporary turns politicaltheory,then,one must
in
dissociatesuchworkfromcertainresiduaofmetaphysical inquiry,such
as theelapsingtimecontinuum.Thatis to say,a problemwithmuchof
postmoderntheoryis, perhaps,thatit is insufficientlypostmodern.

Even thecasual readerhas by now acquireda sense of whatlies in

excess ofthemodelI have beenimposingon therichtextssuppliedby
Foucaultand Pocock. I thinkthatI haveshownthatbothtextsillustrate
thereduction(ofpossibleworldsto immanenceand transcendence) and
theelimination (oftranscendence)necessaryforenjoyingthereassuring
forcesoftransmission and creation.I thinkthatI havealso shownthat
Pocock explainshow theseforcescan interactand thatFoucault sides
withthelatterat theexpenseoftheformer.Butmyfocushas obscured
manyotherfeaturesofthesetexts,manyofwhichare unknownto me.
Some of this excess is perhapsanalogous to the generalexcess that
attendsany form,includingall continua,includingtheelapsingtime
continuum.Because ignoringthisgeneralexcess may stiflepolitical
possibility,I wishnow to turntowardthe problemof supplementing
worldsgovernedby forcesof reassurance.
The elapsingtimecontinuumis so completely entrenched inpolitical
discoursethat one is oftenreducedto silencewhen asked what the
absenceofthecontinuity oftimemightbe like.Such a questionimplies
that the continuoustime series stands in opposition to temporal
discontinuity.Thisimplicationcannotbe allowedherebecauseitwould
merelysubstitutea continuous-discontinuous oppositionforthepast-
futurebinaryopposition.And yetone cannotpretendimmunity to the

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
94 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

question behind the implication:So what if Pocock, Foucault and

countlessothersacceptuncritically theidea of a lineoftime?
I cannot beginto respondto thisquestionwithoutfacinghow to
articulatethenotionof flux.Accident,perpetualbecoming,chaos can
be used to nametheformlessmonstrosity offlux,butanyindicationof
what flux is like must necessarilyrelyon the reason and order(of
language)thatthriveto the demiseof beingformless.It is besidethe
point,then,to proposethatone choose betweenpresupposinglinear
time and perpetualbecoming.53 But perhapsthis suggestioncan be
directedto both"sides" oftheimpossibledivide.Those who approach
politicsas an impositionofformon chaoticworldscan be said,afterall,
to havechosenorderoverchaos. Criticsoflineartimemightask instead
howthosewhopresumelineartimefinditpossibleandfeelcompelledto
makesuchchoices.Theymightalso wishto beginassessingthecostof
this"decision,"a decisionthatmustbe forcedbecause it can neverbe
made.
Thisreversalraisesa different question:Whataretheimplicationsof
fightingthe flux,of resistinga supplementthat has nevernot been
available?54Any discussionof the linearflowof timeis bound to be
affectedby a transfer of thebenefitof thedoubtfromthosewho side
withreason to those "refusing"to choose betweenreason and flux.
Refusingto presumethatall eventssharea universalqualitythatallows
themto lie along an elapsingtimecontinuumis a wayofinsistingthat
whereverone findsa structure one can findan excess.That is, unitary
forms can be imposedonly by sequesteringthe mysteries, accidents,
madnessofflux.Butwhilesuchforms-forexample,thelineoftime-
may"straitjacket" nonmeaning, theycannoteradicateit.Thisis because
fluxworksas a resourceforwritingin thenarrowsense,fordrawing
binarydistinctions; closingoutfluxmakesthefamiliarorderor reason
possible,and this orderhouses all of the familiardistinctions(man-
woman,past-future, individual-collective,etc.) thatlend structure to
political discourse. Because the imprisonment of flux makes such
absent-present distinctionspossible,onecannotspeakreasonablyabout
forcing itoutcompletely. "The sleepofreasonproducesmonsters" is not
a reassuring statement to thepersonwhoisnotcertainofeverbeingfully
awake. Pretendingsuchcertainty by forgettingabout whatnecessarily
exceedsstructures can onlyrestrict life'spossibilities.
Whenfacingsuchpassagesas thisone:

Zarathustradoes notwantto lose anything

of mankind'spast; he wantsto pour
intothemold.55
everything

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 95

It is important,then,to readeverything verycarefully.Thisquotationis

consistentwithPocock's projectand Foucault's essay if everything
namesall outcomesalongan elapsingtimecontinuum, includingthose
outcomesthatdartplayfully back and forthin timeignoringhistorical
continuity. Butifeverything mustalso signify aspectsoflifethatexceed
any conceivabletotality,thenpouringeverything intothe mold must
indicatean overflowing as wellas themotionof a flow.
Beforeexperimenting withthepossibility ofan overflow thatone can
onlyglimpse,tracingitspoliticalimplications,one oughtto assessthe
costsofnotdoingso. Atwhatpricehaverepublicanmythsbeencreated?
How expensiveis it to transmitand conserveself-images acrosstime?
How muchis saved by restricting thinkingabout politicsto a tension
betweentraditionalism and itscritics?Perhapsthereare staleproblems
inpoliticaltheorythatmightlook different ifstudiedfroma perspective
thatis not onlypositiveor negative.56 Answersto thesequestions,of
course,exceedwhatcan be said here.
Butas politicalworldscontinuewriting, remarking, reprogramming,
makingde factosenseofworldsthatin principledefyreasonand order,
certaintermsofpoliticaldiscoursearealreadyimplicated.Ifall orderis
takeninprincipleto be provisional,in a coweringstruggle againstbeing
reassuredwithinbinaryforcefields,it may well become increasingly
difficultto defend,letalonetojustify,hegemonicdominanceinpolitical
life.It may becomenecessaryto use legitimacy, sovereignty,powers-
that-be,inminimalist sensesthatallowone to admitthatpoliticalforms
are vulnerable.Such confessionsmightlead away fromthe entrench-
mentor merereversalof certainfamiliarhegemonicpatterns.But to
avoidthepitfallsofreassuranceone mustmakesenseoftheadvicethata
critiqueof theprincipleof hegemony,if it is to be thoughtradically,
mustinsistthatitis thegiveinthestructures ofourworld(s)thatmakes
powerplayspossibleand nottheotherwayaround.

NOTES

1. For a compellingcase for distinguishing de facto sense-makingand de jure

epistemologicalinsanity,see Jacques Derrida,"Cogito and the Historyof Madness,"
Writingand Difference,trans.byAlan Bass (Chicago: University
ofChicagoPress,1978),
53ff.
2. NormanJacobson,Pride and Solace (Berkeley:University of CaliforniaPress,
1978),3.

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
96 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

3. The continuum can bringreasonand orderto anycluttered Consider,for

territory.
example,Alexander'sdisciplinaryhouse cleaningin sociology,or Barber'sconceptual
housecleaningin politicaltheory.See Jeffrey Alexander,TheoreticalLogic in Sociology
(Berkeley:University ofCaliforniaPress,1982),40; BenjaminBarber,StrongDemocracy:
Participatory PoliticsforaNewAge(Berkeley:University ofCaliforniaPress,1984),219.
4. Seriesis relatedtoserere,sertum,tojoin orbindtogether.Seriesarereassuring to
thedegreethattheypermitunity.
5. I wish to mentionPlato, The Republic,trans. by G. M. Grube (New York:
Hackett,1973)and E. Husserl,Logical Investigations, trans.byJ.N. Findlay(New York:
HumanitiesPress,1970).
6. Aristotle,The Politicsof Aristotle,trans.by ErnestBarker(New York: Oxford
University Press,1985).
7. Heraclitus,TheArtand ThoughtofHeraclitus:An EditionoftheFragmentswith
Translationand Commentary, trans.by C. Kahn (Cambridge:CambridgeUniversity
Press,1979).
8. The issuehereis notwhetheritis reassuring to use tensedlanguageor to speakof
inheriting resemblances fromone'sancestors.The issuehereis howtotallya textrelieson
temporalunity,or any otherimposedform.The assumptionof temporalunitycan be
called reassuringonlyif it forceseverything underthe sun to contract,to rotateon its
terms.One need not inhabita whollytenseduniverseto make oneselfunderstoodwith
tensedlanguage.Derridais rightto suggestthatslippage,or play,in thestructure ofour
world(s)makesitpossibleforsubjectsto thinkinbinaryterms.In otherwords,theorderly
worldoftheeither-or distinctionis madepossiblebykeepingchaoticflotsamout.Those
reassuredby underlying unityforgetwhatmakesthefieldof oppositionpossible.Once
reassured,amidstensuingstruggles foror againstthehegemonicside,politicscreatesthe
appearancethatcreativelythinkingin binarytermsmakes play in the structure of the
world possible. But this relation is backwards and so, therefore,are its political
possibilities.
9. Divorced particularscan provideonlytheoriesof timelike thatof Rousseau's
nativeCarribean;divorceduniversals,likePlatonicForms,are immutableand neednot
worryabout time.GunnellclaimsthatAristotleleads mostreadersto viewtimeas an
"infinitelydivisiblecontinuum"(See J. Gunnell,PoliticalPhilosophyand Time(Middle-
town,CT: WesleyanUniversity Press, 1968),234). Time is a riverwithinwhichone can
splashabout. The wayWesternreadersuse tensedlanguagemakesitperhapstoo easyfor
themto imaginetheriver(past,present,future),but whatis the analogueforthewater
beingsplashedabout?Augustine'ssilencespeaksformostofus as we continueto assume
lineartemporality. We unconsciously uniteuniversalsand particularsin sucha wayas to
maketheidea of an elapsingtimecontinuumpossible.
10. While time-as-a-continuum requiresimmanence,immanencedoes not assure
historicalcontinuity.Pocock shows the possibilityof denyingcontinuityto history
withoutdenyingcontinuity to elapsedtime.For example,disagreements overthecontent
or worthof a heritagecan arise fromwithina perspectivewhich was indisputably
inherited.
11. Most peoplerealizethata continuumsignifies dimensionssuchas thelineusedby
social scienceto capturetherangeof a frequency distribution,but manymissthepoint
that this liningup requiresestablishinga relationbetweenparticularpartsand some
nameable whole. To constitutea continuum,all points must, by definition,share
something incommon.For example,incomedistribution inanyparticularcountry might

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 97

rangefromno income(a pointon thecontinuumfarto theleftofthemeanincome)to the

incomeofthe"mostadvantaged"province(a pointon thecontinuumfarto therightof
mean income);it is difficult
to imaginea province'sincomenot fallingat or in between
eitherextremebecause all pointshave incomein common.Anygroupof people which
managesto survivebyproducingvaluesnotmeasuredbythegivenoperationaldefinition
evenat thenegativeextreme.
of incomecannotbe includedin thedistribution,
12. Pocock's plan is
to elaborateand extendthemodel of a tradition... and attemptin doingso to
discernthedirectionswhichconceptualisation of a traditionmaybe expectedto
take,and something ofthealternatives,
choicesand strategies whichmayconfront
mindsengagedin suchconceptualisation. (237)
My planis to minimizeendnotesbyincludingpagenumbersfromthePocock essayinmy
text.In thissectionall page numbers,includingtheone above inthisnote,referto J.G.A.
Pocock, Politics,Languageand Time(New York: Atheneum,1973),233-272.
13. For moreon "matrices"and "paralanguage,"read J.G.A. Pocock, "the Mach-
iavellian Moment Revisited:A Study in Historyand Ideology,"Journalof Modern
History(March, 1981),50 ff.See also J.G.A. Pocock, Virtue,Commerce,and History:
Essayson PoliticalThoughtand History,Chieflyin theEighteenth Century (Cambridge:
CambridgeUniversity Press,1985),30 ff.
14. As if to remindreadersthat one cannotstop the riverof timefor purposeof
analysis,Pocock adds: "we studytheformwhichits[a society's]self-awareness hasforthe
presentassumed"(emphasisadded) (239).
15. Thisstatement is consistentwithPocock's announcedintention (40) to establisha
politicsoftimeas a subdepartment ofa politicsoflanguage.At issueis whetherhe must
necessarily failin thisendeavorbecauseof uncriticalpresuppositions about time.
16. The importanceofthispointcannotbe underestimated. If it is possibleto show
this,thenhistoriansin thepresentshouldbe able to excavate,locate,thematrixwhich
limitspossibilities,and offerdefinitivestatements(or at least testablehypotheses)
concerning theintendedmeaningofan author'stext.See J.G.A. Pocock,"PoliticalIdeas
As HistoricalEvents:PoliticalPhilosophersAs HistoricalActors,"MelvinRichter,ed.,
Political Theoryand PoliticalEducation(Princeton:PrincetonUniversity Press,1980),
153-55.
17. Recall thatPocock's paralinguistic treatment of theirmodesof receptiontreats
inheritance as thesole mode of reception.
18. It is interestingthatPocock illustratesbeingoutsideof timealtogetherwitha
dreammetaphor.See theDerrida-Foucault-Descartes menagein Derrida,"Cogito ...."
19. You mayrecallthatimmanenceis a presupposition of a timeseries,all elements
mustpossessa certainuniversity to existas a "series." Thisis onlythefirstimpositionofa
polarityin thistext.Afteritrestricts possibilitiesto beingeithermoreor less secular,the
elapsingtimecontinuumcan emergeas societies"move away fromimaginingsocietyin
termsof thesacred."This willbe developedas themodelgrows.
20. Please note the signification of sacrednesshere, althoughthe purelyrational
founderis, accordingto Pocock, alwaysmiraculousand therefore is also includedhere.
21. Pocock offersthreecases ofradicalstrategies to returnto thepast,all withinthe
contextof traditionalsociety:(1) thesearchforan originso old thatit can be seen as a
morelegitimate foundationthanthepresumptive traditionoftheconservative (245-248);
(2) the plea to replace currentusage of society'soriginwitha more correct,renewed

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
98 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

understanding oftheorigin(249-250);and (3) theattemptto inventorigins(250-251). To

Pocock all threestrategies to returnto thepasttendto be "self-abolishing." Assuming"the
realityand ubiquityoftradition,"anyattemptto groundauthority outsideoftraditionis
an attemptto establishitnowhere,so to speak.Thus Pocock quicklygrowsimpatient with
thesethreeradicalattemptsto "abridgetradition,"theseideologicalpostures.But at the
same time he cautions againsttypecastingall criticsof traditionas ideologues(252).
Pocock preparesinsteadto extendhis modelto thesecondstage.
22. And this,ofcourse,mustincludethesharingofhow to use sharing.See Charles
Taylor,"Interpretation and theSciencesofMan," Paul Rabinowand WilliamSullivan,
InterpretiveSocial Science (Berkeley:Universityof CaliforniaPress, 1979), 27-72,
especially52 ff.For Pocock, thatis to say: "At thispointliteracyemergesas theforce
modifying thecharacterof tradition"(254). Historicalthoughtwilleventuallyarise-or
shouldI say "emerge"?-outof thisdevelopment.
23. Pocock, "Political Ideas . . . ," 147-8. See also J.G.A. Pocock, "Verbalizing
PoliticalActs:TowardsA PoliticsofSpeech,"PoliticalTheory(Fall, 1973),27-43.Please
notethatto saythatwordscan short-circuit theprocessesoftransmission is to presuppose
an originalcircuit.
24. CompareTaylor,"Interpretation...."Seealso J.Gunnell,"Method,Methodology,
and the Search forTraditionsin the Historyof PoliticalTheory:A Replyto Pocock's
Salute,"Annalsof Scholarship,30-32.
25. He domesticateshistorywitha troublesomewifemetaphor.
26. See B. Smith,Politicsand Remembrance (Princeton:PrincetonUniversity Press,
1985).
27. CompareA. Gramsci,"The Formationof Intellectuals," TheModernPrinceand
otherWritings, trans.by L. Marks(New York: International), 118-125,especially124.
28. The playin thestructures modifiestheserules.
29. Derrida,"Cogito...."
30. See J. Derrida, Dissemination,trans.by B. Johnson(Chicago: Universityof
Chicago Press,1981),330 ff.
31. This critiqueis importantbecause itillustrates "differance," the"supplement" to
elapsingtime.To be preparedforthisidea, however,one mustdistinguishlineartime
(what I call "elapsing time') and linearhistory.This essay attemptsto draw such a
distinction.ReadersshouldknowthatDerridafindsFoucaultto acceptuncritically the
totalityof lineartime,stressingthemadnessofdiscontinuity (and its other,continuity)
whilefailingto imaginetheextravaganceofgoingbeyondtotality.Accordingto themore
extravagantDerrida,thereis always"an excesswhichoverflows thetotalityofthatwhich
can be thought."Thus, the chargeis deliveredthat Foucault remainsyardedby the
reassuranceof temporalization, despitehis claimto unfoldingdiscontinuities in history.
32. Foucault's essayhas sevensections:(1) a distinctionbetweengenealogyand the
search for timelessorigins;(2) a distinctionbetweentimeboundoriginsand timeless
origins(thisis Pocock'sdistinction betweensacredand seculartime);(3) an analysisofthe
movementfrompresentto pastin thesearchfortimeboundorigins;(4) an analysisofthe
serial movementfrompresentto futureafterthediscoveryof timeboundorigins;(5) a
distinctionbetweenantitraditional voices(3 & 4) ofgenealogy,and thetraditional voices
oflinearhistory; (6) an applicationofgenealogy;and (7) a conclusion.I shallreadsections
threeand fourmostcloselybecausetheyshowhowcompletelyFoucaultis yardedbythe
immanenceof elapsingtimedespitehis flirtation withdiscontinuity.

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 Corlett / FORCES OF REASSURANCE 99

All page numbersin thetextofthissectionofmyessayreferto versionsofFoucault's

"Nietzsche,La Genealogie,L'Histoire,"Hommage A Jean Hyppolite(Paris: Presses
Universitaires de France,1971),145-172.Whilethetranslations aremine,I havereliedon
an English translationratherheavily.See Michel Foucault, "Nietzsche,Genealogy,
History,"Language,Counter-Memory, Practice,trans.byD. F. Bouchardand S. Simon
(Ithaca: CornellUniversity Press,1977),139-164.The numbersto theleftoftheslashmark
referto the Frenchversion;thenumbersto therightoftheslash referto theEnglish.
33. Recall thatseriesis relatedto continuuminbothEnglishand French.For moreon
seriesand discontinuity, see MichelFoucault,"The Discourseon Language,"trans.byR.
Swyer,TheArchaeologyof Knowledge(New York: Pantheon,1972).
34. Giventhisdistinction, it is easy to see whyFoucault would regardDerridaas a
metaphysician; ifone has to be highorlow,Derridais highinthesensethatheis exercised
by comingbeforetime.But to do so is to precede(borrowingtemporallanguage)such
distinctions as thetimebound-timeless one presupposedby Foucault.
35. Or, "in thedirectionof theGods." Note thatto be beforetimeis to movein the
direction,to theside,of thegods.
36. Note that beinglowlydoes not indicatebeingdovelikefor Foucault. Rather,
unearthinglowly,timeboundoriginspermitsundoingthereassuringcontinuities estab-
lishedby pretentious metaphysicians on thehaughtyside ofthehaut-baspolarity.
37. This wouldeliminatetheinterpretation I am advancing;histextwouldno longer
be reassuring.
38. For example,Foucault mighthave describedhistorythe way Proustdescribes
war,"une etatdu perpetualdevenir."
39. Foucault also offers "la souche,"orthestump(e.g.,ofa familytree),or"stock"in
the sense of familylineage.Note, if you will,the resemblanceof lineageand linearity.
Foucault translates"la provenance"as "descent,"also implying a moveback in elapsed
time.
40.
[The work of a genealogistis a questionof] reperertous les marquessubtiles,
singulieres,sous-individuellesqui peuvent s'entrecroiseren lui [individuals,
sentiments, a demeler.(151/145)
ideas] et formerun reseaudifficile
Comparethisto the"code breaking"Pocock describesin J.G.A.Pocock,Untitled,L.
P. Curtis,Jr.,ed., TheHistorian'sWorkshop(New York: Knopf,1970), 165.
41. ". . . unetelleoriginepermetde debrouiller,pourlesmettre a part,touslesmarques
differentes" (151/145).
42. The idea ofdistinguishing betweentheformofhistoryin generaland theformof
history(highcontinuity versuslow discontinuity)is nowhereinsightinthistext.Afterthe
flowoftimeis presupposed,as withPocock,theonlyquestionsworthaskingconcernwhat
has beenlost and whathas been remembered: memoryand itsother,counter-memory.
43. I wishto summonDerrida,not Darwinhere.
44. But it is stilla heritage,you see, becausegenealogycannotbe criticalofelapsing
timewithoutputtingitselfout of business.But, of course,genealogyis unawareof the
reassuranceit emits.
45. IfNOW is likea dam on theriveroftime,sectionthreeis likeswimming upstream
in searchofthesource,or feedingstreams;sectionfouris likethegushingforthofwater
thedam cannotretain.

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
100 POLITICAL THEORY / FEBRUARY 1989

46. These systemsare theones describedas seriesabove.

47.

Plaqant le presenta l'origine,la metaphysique faitcroireau travailobscurd'une

destinationqui chercherait a se fairejour des le premiermoment.La genealogie,
elle, retablitles diverssystemesd'asservissement: non point la puissanceanti-
cipatriced'un sens,mais le jeu hasardeuxdes dominations.(155/148)
48. Derrida can be shownto reversethisrelation,thatis, to arguethatplay makes
hegemonypossibleand nottheotherwayaround.More importanthere,however,is the
emphasison diversity and hazard.
49. The word,retablir,also connoteshealth;soon Foucault willmention"youthful
strength."
50. "c'estcelle que repetentindefiniment
les dominateurset les domines"(156/150).
51.
L'humanite ne progressepas lentementde combat en combat jusqu'a une
reciprocite ou lesreglesse substitueront,
universelle, pourtoujours,ala guerre;elle
installe chacune de ces violences dans un systemede regles,et va ainsi de
dominationen domination.(emphasisadded) (157/151)
52.
Si interpreter, c'etaitmettrelentementen lumiereune signification enfouiedans
l'origineseulela metaphysique pourraitinterpreter,
le devenirde 1'umanite.Mais
si interpreter, c'ests'emparer,par violenceou subreption,d'un systemede regles
qui n'a pas en soi de signification etluiimposerunedirection,
essentielle, le ployera
une volontenouvelle,le faireentrerdans un autrejeu et le soumettrea des regles
secondes, alors le devenirde l'humaniteest une serie d'interpretations. Et la
genealogiedoit en etrel'histoire.... (158/151-2)
53. Derrida makes this point at the end of his "Structure,Sign and Play in the
Discourseof theHuman Sciences,"Writing and Difference,292-3.
54. Flux can be used to name arbitrarymatterthat is so universalas to defy
immanenceand transcendence.
55. Heideggerdescribesthisas a "note fromthe posthumouslypublishedwritings
surrounding Zarathustra."See MartinHeidegger,Nietzsche,VolumeII, trans.byD. F.
Krell(San Francisco:Harperand Row, 1984),215.
56. Thisis a problemwithmuchofthewriting, forexample,on community inpolitical
theory.

WilliamS. Corlett,Jr.teachespoliticaltheoryat Bates College.He is theauthorof

Community WithoutUnity:A PoliticsofDerridianExtravagance(Durham:Duke
UniversityPress,forthcoming March 1989).

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.138 on Fri, 9 May 2014 16:17:25 PM

All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions