Ideology Critique or Discourse Analysis?

The following article examines the theoretical foundations and practical consequences of Slavoj Zizek's critique of Foucauldian discourse analysis. It does so by uncovering Zizek's idiosyncratic approach to the question of ideology critique. The aim of our investigation is twofold. First, we attempt to demonstrate the implications of Foucault's failure to theorize the generative principle of sociosymbolic formations; second, we argue that by conceiving the Real of class antagonism as the disavowed core of ideological fantasy, Zizek rectifies Foucault's inconsistency while simultaneously opening up a vital political space for the reconceptualization of the paradigm of ideology critique. Our article does not attempt to bring into dialogue Foucault's theory of discourse with Zizek's theory of ideology; rather, it stages an encounter between the two. The encounter involves a contrastive comparison, the tertium comparationis of which is the problematic of how Foucault's and Zizek's respective frameworks may help us conceptualize political change. Against this background and criterion it is possible to establish where and why their social theories differ, and to assess the extent to which Zizek's theoretical choices are preferable to Foucault's. [Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications Ltd., copyright 2006.]