Governmentality and Counter-hegemony in Bangladesh

Using Michel Foucault's idea of governmentality, this book reinterprets various cases of revolt and popular uprisings in Bangladesh. It attempts to synthesize the theories of Foucault's governmentality and Antonio Gramsci's notions of hegemony and counter-hegemony. Bangladesh's history of revolt and counter-hegemony are categorized as nationalist governmentality, authoritarian governmentality, and global/neo-liberal governmentality. Each of these phases, the author argues, is not a replacement or dislocation of the earlier governmentality in practice but rather a reformulation of the construct. This reconfiguration results from counter-hegemonic revolts launched by various subaltern categories. Throughout the book, the author asserts that governmentality and counter-conducts/counter-hegemonies are linked with and transformed by each other. Furthermore, by using Bangladesh as a case study, the author contemplates an idea of colonial and post-colonial governmentality.

S. M. Shamsul Alam is Professor of Sociology in the Department of Economics and Social Sciences, BRAC University, Dhaka, Bangladesh. He recently authored Rethinking Mau Mau in Colonial Kenya and has published numerous articles in peer-refereed journals.