Theoria

A student writes in a short commentary/reading journal assignment on H.L.A. Hart’s The Concept of Law:

Hart’s article is clearly interested in attacking Austin’s view of the law is [sic] the command of the soveriegn [sic] backed up by coercive farce [sic!!!] and where the soverigns [sic] powers are not limited by law.

Great stuff. I like the idea of a”coercive farce.” It is reminiscent of Foucault’s discussion of “monstrous sovereignty” in his 1974-1974 lectures entitled “Abnormal.” Zizek, no doubt, likely says something about the farce of sovereign power somewhere. Unfortunately, it is unlikely the case that the student was trying to say something about the monstrosity that is sovereign power, but rather made a typo.