Spinoza and constituent power

Abstract

This article considers Baruch Spinoza’s contribution to a theory of constituent power. Modern theories of constituent power generally agree on its paradoxical essence: a power that comes before the law and founds the law is at the same time a power that, once the juridical sphere is established, has to be obliterated by the law. Spinoza’s ontology has been recognised as one of the early modern sources of constituent power, yet he argues for a strict equivalence between law and power. This article argues that by reading Spinoza’s political theory through the lens of a radical immanence between ontology and history, we can understand him as a source for a theory of constituent power. It also argues that, through this immanence, Spinoza’s thought offers a solution to the paradox of constituent power and enriches contemporary discussions on the origin of juridical sphere and the relationship between politics and law.