We Live in a Different Time

Juan Wang, McGill University

While studies of comparative authoritarianism problematize regime stabilities, their theories have dominantly focused on the rational and strategies of rulers and political elites. This paper instead puts the experiences of citizens in illiberal regimes on the central stage of analysis, and especially their lived experiences of time. Building on insights from the philosophy of critical phenomenology, this paper suggests that citizens in illiberal regimes often experience overlapping temporality and unstable tempo, which leads to a backward-looking sense of justice and reserved expectations of the future. They are therefore more receptive towards practical legitimizing projects enacted by the government. This paper uses the People’s Republic of China as a main example, supported by studies of other regimes.

No extended abstract or paper available

 Presented in Session 153. Production of Knowledge Regimes: Experts, Political Authority, and Legitimation I