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The Grandeur of Biopolitical Science

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 May 2013

Larry Arnhart*
Affiliation:
Northern Illinois University

Abstract

John Hibbing's essay is a persuasive defense of biopolitical research. I argue, however, that Hibbing does not go far enough in recognizing the broad vision of biopolitical science as a science of political animals. We need to see this as a science that moves through three levels of deep history: the natural history of the political species, the cultural history of a political community, and the biographical history of political actors in a community. I illustrate this by discussing Abraham Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation at these three levels of biopolitical science.

Type
Reflection Response
Copyright
Copyright © American Political Science Association 2013 

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