The State of exception: An insight into its theoretical background

Abstract

This article aims to carry out a critical examination of the state of exception within the context of modern constitutional state, to shed light on this legal anomaly that entails the suspension of rights, freedoms, and norms. The state of exception, wielding the power to annul the fundamental rights and freedoms enumerated and enshrined before it, finds its form in almost all manifestations of modern law (constitutions, laws, international law, conventions). The ambiguous position of the concept has widened the theoretical debates that accompany it. This article is an attempt to elucidate the theoretical discussions revolving around the state of exception: namely Carl Schmitt, Giorgio Agamben and Judith Butler’s perspectives. The central objective is to discuss one of the aspects of the intricate relationship between modern law and sovereignty.