Paper's abstract

Julien Rabachou, What are collective individual made of?
The problematic and paradoxical idea of the « collective individual » is classically used in the philosophy of social sciences in order to describe non-biological or non-physical entities like nations, states, and institutions. This article examines these particular realities, presuming that in order to imagine them concretely, we must acknowledge their materiality; just as we ordinarily consider that distinct individuals are equipped with a body that ensures their unity and constitutes their being. We must then ascertain the nature of this very original body, one which Ernst Kantorowicz helps us to understand when he considers the origins of the « corpus mysticum » concept. Through an analysis of realities like the crowd, the legal entity, the territory, and the people, this article attempts to see if something concretely fleshes out to collectivities.

Key Words : collectivity
t. 57, 2014 : p. 563-576

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