Personal and Social Education, Politics and Gesture

This paper discusses the popular and philosophical use of the term ‘the politics of gesture’. It then examines the role and purpose of Personal and Social Education in light of these discussions. The popular usage (‘gesture politics’) acknowledges the role of discourse as social practice (Fairclough 1997) and the potency of words and phrases as condensation symbols, that arouse or pacify the polis (Edelman 1964). It also reflects a loss of faith in politics (Putnam 2000) and is used to dismiss political acts as mere spectacle. The philosophical usage (‘the politics of gesture’) was developed by Agamben (2000). He characterises modern politics as a form of biopolitics. He argues that political acts are increasingly focussed on the containment of the sections of society that are not viewed as being fully actualised (and therefore human), for example the sick, the criminal, the very young and the very old (Bos 2005; Mills 2005). The politics of gesture is Agamben’s antidote: a political system which is inclusive by starting with the body and with gesture rather than with language. Personal and Social Education is then considered, using the above as frameworks for analysis. PSE abounds with condensation symbols and is particularly fertile ground for gesture politics. The associated discourse is steeped in ‘moral panic’ (Buck and Inman 1998: p. 1 - 2) and contains an inherent model not only of the fully actualised human, but also of the behaviour and characteristics of those who lie outside the polis, the unactualised and brutal elements of the child and of society that PSE aims to eradicate. The implications and significance of this analysis will be the topic for further debate.