Constructing identity through humour in left-wing populism

人们普遍认为，我们正在经历一个“民粹主义时刻”。政治正变得更加情绪化和两极分化。按照拉克劳的民粹主义逻辑来理解，旧的话语秩序留下了关键数量的需求没有得到满足；这些需求聚集在一起，在空洞的符号下找到了代表。这组需求背后的力量是情感的，通过这个过程形成了政治身份。对这一民粹主义时刻有很多研究。大多数人倾向于遵循理性主义正统，忽视或淡化情感作为政治的一个有效组成部分。最近，研究将情感带回了民粹主义的研究。然而，对它的研究大多是与理性分开进行的。最近，研究人员开始将情感和理性视为相互关联的现象。我的作品定位于这一学派，我将探索左翼民粹主义中话语和情感之间的相互作用，以构建集体身份。在对这场正在进行的辩论的原创贡献中，我将集中讨论幽默，因为它同时具有情感和话语两方面的特点，并且在我的案例研究中很常见。我的研究将比较幽默在Podemos、La FranceInSoumise和Momentum/工党社区中的作用。聚焦于这些民粹主义项目的支持者，而不是领导人，我将探索幽默是如何动员影响并为支持者提供影响话语的因素--让‘人民’回到民粹主义。

It is widely acknowledged that we are living through a'populist moment'. Politics is becoming more emotionaland polarised. Understood according to Laclau's populistlogic, the old discursive order has left a critical number ofdemands unsatisfied; these demands have groupedtogether and found representation under empty signifiers.The force behind this grouping of demands is affective, andthrough this process political identities are formed.There has been much research into this populist moment.Most has tended to follow rationalist orthodoxy and ignoredor downplayed affect as a valid component of politics.Recently, research has brought affect back into the study ofpopulism. However, it has mostly been studied separatelyfrom reason. More recently, researchers have begun toapproach affect and reason as interrelated phenomena. Mywork is positioned in this school.I will explore the interplay between discourse and affect inconstructing collective identities in left-wing populism. Inan original contribution to this ongoing debate, I will focuson humour, as it is simultaneously both affective anddiscursive, and prevalent in my case studies. My researchwill compare the role of humour in Podemos, La FranceInsoumise and Momentum/Labour communities. Focusingon supporters of these populist projects rather than leaders,I will explore how humour mobilises affects and provides ameans for supporters to influence discourse - putting the'people' back into populism.