Somatic States

“The idea of a somatic state makes immediate, intuitive sense: once you read it, you realize that you yourself have thought in exactly such terms. This is why, at the same moment you know that this is an absolutely new idea, it feels intensely (and sometimes uncomfortably) familiar. Franck Billé brilliantly denaturalizes this idea, thus opening up new possibilities for critique and political action. Somatic States is scholarship at its finest: it unsettles things you thought you knew while providing a compelling analytic frame for the world’s most urgent issues.” - Elizabeth Cullen Dunn, author of No Path Home: Humanitarian Camps and the Grief of Displacement

“The strengths of this extremely persuasive book lie in its intellectual scope and how it brings together hitherto different ways in which territory has been related to the question of state and imperial sovereignty. Franck Billé’s scholarship, which is stunning in its geographical range and historical and philosophical depth, made me rethink topics I had thought settled. Somatic States will appeal to political theorists, anthropologists, and geographers interested in contemporary statehood as well as a broader audience interested in the rise of populist nationalism worldwide.” - John Agnew, author of Hidden Geopolitics: Governance in a Globalized World

"Somatic States is a literary feast that offers you an entrée of compelling arguments related to the state and how bodily metaphors shape our current understandings of borders and territoriality, but also an abundance of captivating information on a range of topics. Like a good meal, it leaves you satisfied, but wanting more." - Theresa Catalano, Journal of Anthropological Research