The Two Logics of Autocratic Rule

• Department of Political and Social Sciences

In this seminar, Johannes Gerschewski, Fernand Braudel Fellow, will present the paper "The Two Logics of Autocratic Rule."

According to The Two Logics of Autocratic Rule, all autocracies must fulfill three conditions to survive: the co-optation of key elites into their inner sanctum, the repression of potential dissent, and popular legitimation. How these conditions complement each other, however, depends on alternative logics: over-politicisation and de-politicisation. While the former aims at mobilising people via inflating a friend-foe distinction, the latter renders the people passive and apathetic, relying instead on performance-driven forms of legitimation.

The two-logics theory finds empirical support in the analysis of 45 autocratic regimes episodes in East Asia since the end of World War II. In simultaneously synthesising and extending existing research on non-democracies, the book proposes an innovative way to understand autocratic rule that goes beyond the classic distinction between totalitarian and authoritarian regimes.

The speaker will be presenting in person. Participants can follow the talk from Seminar room 2, although space is restricted to a maximum of 13 people on a first-come, first-served basis. The talk will also be live-streamed and participants will receive the zoom link once registered.