State power developmental trends

pp. 169-203

in: José M. Dominguès, Critical theory and political modernity, Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan, 2019

Abstract

Mobilizing a large number of authors with more empirical intent, although conceptually articulate, Domingues discusses in this chapter the workings and development of the modern state. It is very strongly analytically elaborated. State power enhancement and state strengthening, the concentration of power in the state and power sharing as well as the state's capabilities (taxation, managing, moulding, materialization, surveillance, coercion) are analytically defined. Mann and Foucault stand out in the discussion. State rational expediency is detailed, including its hidden aspects, which are a thorn in the side of liberalism. This is both a key imaginary element and a strong institutional feature of the modern state. State domination and its processes lie at the core of this chapter. The generative mechanisms that have brought about these developments, with centrality for a critical discussion of Elias' thesis about state development, also feature in the chapter.