On Impotence

Name: On Impotence
Price: 351.75 AUD
Availability: PreOrder

Life in an Age of Frenetic Paralysis

By: Paolo Virno, Arianna Bove (Translator)

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Hardcover | 6 July 2026

At a Glance

Format
Hardcover

Dimensions(cm)
22.9 x 15.2

Hardcover

$351.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $87.94 with

Available: 6th July 2026

Preorder. Will ship when available.

An incisive and urgent book that explores the hidden roots of our contemporary powerlessness. Contemporary life is marked by a paradoxical form of impotence. Whether in love, labor, or political struggle, we often find ourselves locked in a state of frenetic paralysis—unable to act as we wish or to endure what confronts us. This impotence is not born of lack, but of excess: an abundance of skills, capacities, and opportunities that, instead of taking form as coherent actions or speech, stagnate and turn in on themselves. In this thought-provoking meditation, philosopher Paolo Virno examines this strange impotence through the lens of classical thought, drawing especially on Aristotle and Marx. To overcome this troubling state, Virno calls for a collective search for a shared spiritual and practical exercise aimed at reclaiming agency. He argues that only by learning to renounce renunciation can we cultivate deliberate words and timely decisions.

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