Inhabiting a Place in the Common : Profanation and Biopolitics in Teaching

Abstract

This article considers the common and shared world in teaching, by reference to the concept of profanation in relation to biopolitics. “To profane”, means to treat something (or someone) as worldly and as something “that can be played with”. The act of profanation has implications for how objects that are “put on the table” can be regarded in teaching and how these “objects” can become public goods. But what happens when things that are used in teaching are representations of social injustice and suffering? This article will give a critique of the idea of profanation, specifically discussing when teaching deals with social injustice and representations of suffering.