The Relevance of Nietzsche to Democratic Theory: Micropolitics and the Affirmation of Difference

Abstract

This paper argues that Nietzsche presents an ontology of excess that, by problematizing the logic of identity, can positively contribute to democratic theory and practice. This ontology is missed by a wide range of interpreters who try to depoliticize Nietzsche's thought, align it with the agonisms of contemporary mass democracy, or re-align it with an aristocratic politics of fixed hierarchy. While Nietzsche himself may not extend this ontology onto the political domain, the writings of Foucault, and Deleuze and Guattari demonstrate how it can provide greater appreciation of the subtleties and complexities of power relations that operate at a micropolitical level.