I try to take seriously Butler’s suggestion that we should refrain from looking at verbal offences on the one hand, and Politically Correct (PC) norms on the other, in terms of the magical view of performatives: as if they could not fail, whatever the circumstances of their utterance. I analyse this first by considering some reasons to think that the power of words is sometimes overestimated. Then, I look at the explanations of magic in anthropology to provide an appropriate notion of “magic (performative)”: a hybrid entity, encompassing both an affective- symbolic component and a claim to objective description (with the related causal efficacy). Finally, I provide reasons to think that this “primitive” way of thinking is still alive deep down our well- educated minds.
Political correctness and taboos: A psychological- developmental model
Mazzone Marco
2024-01-01
Abstract
I try to take seriously Butler’s suggestion that we should refrain from looking at verbal offences on the one hand, and Politically Correct (PC) norms on the other, in terms of the magical view of performatives: as if they could not fail, whatever the circumstances of their utterance. I analyse this first by considering some reasons to think that the power of words is sometimes overestimated. Then, I look at the explanations of magic in anthropology to provide an appropriate notion of “magic (performative)”: a hybrid entity, encompassing both an affective- symbolic component and a claim to objective description (with the related causal efficacy). Finally, I provide reasons to think that this “primitive” way of thinking is still alive deep down our well- educated minds.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
