Security in Action: How John Dewey Can Help Us Follow the Production of Security Assemblages

Abstract

While the term’ security assemblages’ lends substantial analytical purchase to mappings of contemporary security governance arrangements, this contribution suggests its purchase could be radically expanded by building on insights by John Dewey and elaborated upon by actor-network theory (ANT). Where most studies use the term ‘security assemblage’ negatively — to show how contemporary security governance doesn’t fit the state-centric institutional and territorial mold of traditional IR theorizing — I argue that the work of pragmatists such as John Dewey can enrich the analytical purchase of the term ‘security assemblage’. By being agnostic as to the ontological nature of governance arrangements, I want to suggest that Dewey and ANT widen the scope of what security assemblages are.