Destruction I: Energy

This chapter outlines a theoretical model that allows for the analysis of aesthetic operations of destruction, with the understanding that those operations have the potential to provoke experiences of sovereignty. In order to establish the relationship between aesthetic destruction and the experience of sovereignty, I outline Bataille’s concept of the ‘general economy’ and the relationship it has to media cultures as they are situated in contemporary capitalism. I then present an argument for this relationship between the sovereign experience produced by aesthetic and experiential destruction and simulacra in media cultures. I elaborate on Bataille’s sovereignty in relation to the ancient