Premium
Political Regulation and the Strategic Production of Space: The European Union as a Post‐Fordist State Spatial Project
Author(s) -
Wissel Jens,
Wolff Sebastian
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
antipode
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.177
H-Index - 98
eISSN - 1467-8330
pISSN - 0066-4812
DOI - 10.1111/anti.12265
Subject(s) - politics , fordism , authoritarianism , economic system , political economy , scalar (mathematics) , reproduction , state (computer science) , space (punctuation) , european union , sociology , political science , economic geography , neoclassical economics , epistemology , economics , law , democracy , economy , international trade , computer science , mathematics , philosophy , ecology , geometry , algorithm , biology , operating system
Abstract This article addresses the spatial differentiation of statehood in the process of European integration, looking at its consequences for the reorganization of political rule. First, we elaborate our theoretical foundations resting in materialist theories of the state. It is argued that hitherto analytical approaches have hardly been able to systematically integrate the societal generation of space. This shortcoming is addressed by drawing on theories of space discussed in radical geography. Second, we trace the spatial transformation of statehood in the EU. Our assertion is that the latter is characterized by the emergence of a multi‐scalar ensemble of state apparatuses. Finally, we discuss the implications of this transformation for the reproduction of domination. We assume that the multi‐scalar form of statehood offers a significant basis for the emergence of authoritarian forms of politics in the EU. At the same time, social conflicts over the political design of the EU are intensifying.