Who Changes the World

“Who Changes the World: The Political Subject-in-Outline” introduces the idea of the political subject-in-outline to creatively engage with the tension between the exclusionary character of the political subject and its necessity for agency. It explains why giving up on the subject altogether or theorizing it as a constantly shifting entity is implicated in the project of capitalism, and acknowledges the necessity of defining a political subject to critique and transform capitalism. Yet its outline reminds people that any definition of the political subject must remain permanently open for contestation to avoid its exclusionary character. This chapter also explains that the subject-in-outline aims to establish a mediated relation between the universal and particular, as well as mind and body. Furthermore, it shows that the idea of a political subject-in-outline can help people avoid alienation, instrumental relations, and the coldness of love in capitalism.