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Assembling Political Parties
Author(s) -
Page Sam,
Dittmer Jason
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
geography compass
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.587
H-Index - 65
ISSN - 1749-8198
DOI - 10.1111/gec3.12208
Subject(s) - temporalities , politics , assemblage (archaeology) , argument (complex analysis) , embodied cognition , meaning (existential) , affect (linguistics) , political economy , political science , political geography , order (exchange) , sociology , epistemology , aesthetics , law , history , philosophy , economics , communication , archaeology , finance , biochemistry , chemistry
This paper argues for political geographers to reengage with party politics. We review the treatment of political parties in political geography and beyond, finding fault with the purported divide between society and political parties. In contrast, we argue that political parties are necessarily embroiled and enmeshed in and of society, and that assemblage and affect provide potentially vibrant ways to reengage with their importance and meaning. Assemblage theory foregrounds embodied and affective aspects of voters as well as the multiple temporalities that come together to create the election as an event. In order to ground this theoretical argument, we investigate the potentials of an election campaign flyer, as well as suggesting other avenues of study.