Sentimental State(s)

Affective Politics of Order and Belonging
1. Auflage 2025
ISBN: 978-3-8376-7417-0
Verlag: Transcript Verlag

Buch, Englisch, Band 3, 368 Seiten, Kartoniert, Format (B × H): 149 mm x 224 mm, Gewicht: 574 g

Reihe: Global Sentimentality

1. Why did you choose this topic?

We chose this topic to pursue two core aims: first, to critically analyze the affective underpinnings of political culture across diverse global contexts, and second, to theorize the sentimental across disciplinary boundaries. We approach the sentimental as a relational code that can bind communities, mobilize action, and shape imaginaries of order and belonging.

2. What new perspectives does your book offer?

Sentimental State(s) offers new perspectives by foregrounding the sentimental as a powerful, yet often overlooked, force in political culture. The volume challenges dismissive views of the sentimental and reframes it as a mode of emotional communication integral to both statecraft and dissent. By distinguishing between sentimental leadership and the people’s feelings, the book offers a nuanced and multidisciplinary framework for understanding the affective dynamics between state and citizenry.

3. What makes your topic relevant for current research debates?

Amid rising interest in affect across disciplines, our focus on the sentimental offers a historically grounded, media-sensitive, and globally comparative approach to how emotions are mobilized, performed, and contested. At a time when political discourse is saturated with affect, the sentimental provides a critical lens for unpacking the cultural logics that underlie contemporary forms of identification, polarization, and symbolic power.

4. Choose one person you would like to discuss your book with!

Sara Ahmed.

5. Your book summary in one sentence:

Sentimental State(s) explores the interplay of emotions and politics globally, revealing sentimentality as a vital cultural and political influence.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Paul, Heike

Pritz, Sarah

Fachgebiete

• Sozialwissenschaften Politikwissenschaft Politische Systeme Staats- und Regierungsformen, Staatslehre
• Interdisziplinäres Wissenschaften Wissenschaft und Gesellschaft | Kulturwissenschaften Kulturwissenschaften

Über Autor(innen)

Paul, Heike
Heike Paul (Prof. Dr.), geb. 1968, ist Lehrstuhlinhaberin für Amerikanistik an der Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg. Forschungsaufenthalte und Gastprofessuren führten sie nach Cambridge (MA), Los Angeles (CA) und Hanover (NH). Sie ist u.a. Sprecherin des DFG-Graduiertenkollegs »Das Sentimentale in Literatur, Kultur und Politik« und erhielt 2018 den Leibniz-Preis.