Until now, the theory metaphor affect economy has been interpreted to mean the disciplinary power of the economy over the affects, and in this context, the metaphor became key to the function of literature in modernity. However, the underlying paradox of the juxtaposition suggests a substantially more dynamic reading: shouldn't we also think about the affect of economy, which potentially opens up another, speculative poetics of modernity?

Gesine Hindemith, University of Stuttgart, Germany; Dagmar Stöferle, LMU Munich, Germany.