Antagonism and Radical Politics in the Philosophy of Slavoj Žižek

Abstract

The relationship between truth and politics in Slavoj Žižek’s political philosophy is a problematic relationship, particularly in post-modern discourse and global liberal order, because in the context of this discourse, the relative truth has a direct impact on politics as a subordinate filed leading to the fragmentation of the society. Žižek believes that within the dominant system and its ideology, which finds itself in consumer capitalism, there are always possibilities of resistance, especially as he defines politics as a manifestation of class struggle in its economic dimension. The perpetrator of this struggle appears as a historical subject and manifests in the form of deprived and excluded groups, or marginalization of society. This will become an empty hole or group that the system does not embrace or include. In return, this will remain as a permanent crack or hole in the system and will not allow the system to be completely closed or reach absolute integration. In addition, this will remain as a possibility of revolution and protest and become a dynamic element in a dialectic relationship that moves politics at its radical level. This article is divided into two parts. In the first part, the article talks about the politics of truth and events, universal truth, representation, event and change, and holes in the system. The second part of the article is dedicated to analyzing the concept of antagonism and highlighting the tensions between anthos, demos, polis and politics. Then, the article refers to class struggle as the core of politics by Žižek, and focuses on the concept of revolution and the role of historical subject in the process of change.