Oxana Timofeeva - Solar Politics

1 Cover

2 Series Page Theory Redux series Series editor: Laurent de Sutter Mark Alizart, Cryptocommunism Armen Avanessian, Future Metaphysics Franco Berardi, The Second Coming Alfie Bown, The Playstation Dreamworld Laurent de Sutter, Narcocapitalism Roberto Esposito, Persons and Things Graham Harman, Immaterialism Helen Hester, Xenofeminism Srećko Horvat, The Radicality of Love Lorenzo Marsili, Planetary Politics Dominic Pettman, Infinite Distraction Eloy Fernández Porta, Nomography Mikkel Bolt Rasmussen, Late Capitalist Fascism Nick Srnicek, Platform Capitalism Oxana Timofeeva, Solar Politics

3 Title Page Solar Politics Oxana Timofeeva polity

4 Copyright Copyright © Oxana Timofeeva 2022 The right of Oxana Timofeeva to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published in 2022 by Polity Press Polity Press 65 Bridge Street Cambridge CB2 1UR, UK Polity Press 101 Station Landing Suite 300 Medford, MA 02155, USA All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. ISBN-13: 978-1-5095-4966-5 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Control Number: 2021942281 The publisher has used its best endeavours to ensure that the URLs for external websites referred to in this book are correct and active at the time of going to press. However, the publisher has no responsibility for the websites and can make no guarantee that a site will remain live or that the content is or will remain appropriate. Every effort has been made to trace all copyright holders, but if any have been overlooked the publisher will be pleased to include any necessary credits in any subsequent reprint or edition. For further information on Polity, visit our website: politybooks.com

5 Acknowledgments Acknowledgments I have been doing research on Georges Bataille’s writings for quite a while, since I was a student; however, his idea of the general, or, to be more precise, solar economy was never really the focus of my interest until the Spring of 2020, when the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic bluntly intervened in my research plans. I have to thank Imre Szeman and Allan Stoekl, whose work led me to believe that the idea of discussing Bataille today in terms of ecology and energy politics is not insane. Further reflections made me desire to write a philosophical essay on the sun, which I thought I would endlessly postpone, but, luckily, I was contacted by Laurent de Sutter, to whom I am thankful for his kind invitation to collaborate in Polity’s “Theory Redux” series. I am also grateful to John Thompson and the Polity editorial board for valuable tips regarding the initial project; Jeff Diamanti, Benjamin Noys, and Artemy Magun for their comments and critical remarks; Alexander Klose, Benjamin Steiniger, and the “Beauty of oil” collective for insights; Oleg Kharkhordin for not forgetting the Earth, Alexey Zygmont for encouraging me to carry out research on violence, and the students of the Stasis Center for Philosophy at the European University at St. Petersburg, Andrew Glukhovsky, Alexey Sergienko, and Michail Fedorchenko, for their suggestions. I wish to express my gratitude to my family, and to my beloved husband Andrew Zmeul, with whom I was sharing initial drafts and ideas, for his amusing excurses into the perspectives of future technological developments of human and posthuman civilizations. Finally, my thanks are due to the comrade sun, who – even in St. Petersburg, where it is usually a rare guest – was so generous during the months when I was writing this book.

6 Introduction: Two Suns and the City Notes

7 1 Two Kinds of Violence Negation of negation General strike Divine violence In the colonies A serpent and a spider Notes

8 2 General Economy Be like the sun! Wombats and ethics Pandemic squander Notes

9 3 Restrictive Violence of Capital The indifference of nature Phoenix Colonizing the sun Let there be light! Notes

10 Conclusion: The Sun Is a Comrade Notes

11 End User License Agreement

1 Cover

2 Table of Contents

3 Series Page

4 Title Page

5 Copyright

6 Acknowledgments

7 Introduction: Two Suns and the City

8 Begin Reading

9 Conclusion: The Sun Is a Comrade

10 End User License Agreement

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Theory Redux series

Series editor: Laurent de Sutter

Mark Alizart, Cryptocommunism

Armen Avanessian, Future Metaphysics

Franco Berardi, The Second Coming

Alfie Bown, The Playstation Dreamworld

Laurent de Sutter, Narcocapitalism

Roberto Esposito, Persons and Things

Graham Harman, Immaterialism

Helen Hester, Xenofeminism

Srećko Horvat, The Radicality of Love

Lorenzo Marsili, Planetary Politics

Dominic Pettman, Infinite Distraction

Eloy Fernández Porta, Nomography

Mikkel Bolt Rasmussen, Late Capitalist Fascism

Nick Srnicek, Platform Capitalism

Oxana Timofeeva, Solar Politics

Oxana Timofeeva

polity

Copyright © Oxana Timofeeva 2022

The right of Oxana Timofeeva to be identified as Author of this Work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

First published in 2022 by Polity Press

Polity Press

65 Bridge Street

Cambridge CB2 1UR, UK

Polity Press

101 Station Landing

Suite 300

Medford, MA 02155, USA

All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purpose of criticism and review, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.