Power degree zero: Montesquieu, Tocqueville, despotism

ABSTRACT This paper considers the applicability and history of the concept of despotism as a critical model of political power. In spite of its 'Orientalist' pedigree, critical perusal of the work of Montesquieu (and, secondarily, Tocqueville) reveals that the concept has also functioned as a critical ‘pure type’ that is feasibly applicable not just to all societies but perhaps especially to the West. As such, despotism has arguably been more of a satirical – or ‘inverted’ – concept than straightforwardly an empirical one.