Foucault's Aesthetics of Existence and Shusterman's Somaesthetics

Bringing together Michel Foucault’s aesthetics of existence and Richard Shusterman’s somaesthetics, this volume provides a critical comparison of two of the most influential philosophical theories of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Introduced by a comprehensive overview of both concepts by editors Stefano Marino and Valentina Antoniol, the ensuing chapters interrogate the affinities and variances between Foucault’s and Shusterman’s philosophies. Building on the interdisciplinary character of somaesthetics and aesthetics of existence, international scholars explore these ideas through a wide range of topics ranging from care of the self and of the social self to the ethical and political challenges posed by themes as white ignorance, construction of resistances, and production of subjectivities. Given the central role played by the body in both concepts, this volume also affords particular attention to the philosophy of sexuality.

Demonstrating the value of reading these two thinkers together through the adoption of radical interpretive perspectives, Foucault’s Aesthetics of Existence and Shusterman’s Somaesthetics highlights the potentialities and the relevance of Foucault’s and Shusterman’s theories, even with respect to our actualité.

Valentina Antoniol is Researcher of Political Philosophy at the University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, Italy. Her main research interests and research fields are political philosophy, political theory, contemporary continental philosophy, history of political thought and feminist philosophy. She is the author of Foucault et la guerre. À partir de Schmitt, contre Schmitt (2023).

Stefano Marino is Associate Professor of Aesthetics at the University of Bologna, Italy. His main research interests and research fields are philosophical hermeneutics, critical theory of society, neo-pragmatism and somaesthetics, philosophy of music, and aesthetics of fashion. He co-edited the book Pearl Jam and Philosophy (Bloomsbury, 2021).