Agency and power: The contractual illusion

Abstract

Many forms of governance today stress the contractual form. This article asks if this phenomenon is real or just an illusion. The contract is analysed in light of Steven Lukes’ power theory. The contractual form avoids everything that the Lukesian or Foucauldian ‘third dimension’ of power seeks to establish. Contracts aim to make power visible, transparent, accountable and based on conscious, informed consent. The article argues, on the basis of the theory of justification developed by Boltanski and Thévenot, that contractual power is a response to the principle of justification in contemporary society, where agency is a measure of human dignity and worth. Contractual power explains the tendency to exclude people who are incapable of assuming agency. The contractual form is literally an illusion, but has real consequences in society.