The Task of Becoming Minor: On the Politics of Representation

One of the key issues addressed by political theories on the Left is the question of how those who are excluded from the realm of political representation may speak out and make themselves heard. Referring to Kafka!s In the Penal Colony – a text that illustrates particularly well the workings of representation – and to Deleuze and Guattari!s concept of “minor literatures” – a term coined byKafka – the article demonstrates that oneway of copingwith the difficulties of representation is tomake aminor use of language. Contrary to the claim that politics is fundamentally about becoming major, I argue that the task of becoming minor is not only an essential element of emancipatory politics but also provides us with a criterion for differentiating between progressive, emancipatory forms of speaking out and their reactionary counterparts.