The Political Thought of Carl Schmitt: Introduction to Carl Schmitt

Carl Schmitt and his work has been slowly clawing their way towards the political and academic mainstream in the English speaking world since his work began being translated into English in the 1980s. The ‘Crown Jurist of the Third Reich’ has become an important interlocutor for a sizable number of significant academics and political figures from Habermas, Derrida, and Agamben to Dugin, Vermuele, and JD Vance. In this first seminar, we will explore who Carl Schmitt was and how this contextualises his work. Particular emphasis will be placed on examining Schmitt’s Catholicism, conservatism, and Nazism and we will explore how these three important aspects of his character coloured his world view.