Situated at the interface between moral and political philosophy and art theory, this seminar attempts to critically analyze both the possibilities and limits of resistance under contemporary political, social, economic, and cultural conditions. On the one hand, the seminar gives an overview over recent and contemporary theoretical debates on the morality of resistance by examining arguments advanced by theorists such as, e.g., Hannah Arendt, Michel Foucault, Judith Butler, Slavoj Zizek, and Tommie Shelby in order to justify more or less radical forms of resistance that range from revolution, rebellion, and strike to civil disobedience, protest, and critique. Particular attention is paid to thinkers who reflect on justifiable modes and means of resistance in the context of gender, racial, and class inequalities. On the other hand, key questions -- questions concerning, e.g., suitable agents (Individual 'rebels'? Resistance groups? 'Multitudes'?) and targets (The state? Corporations? The '1 percent'?) of resistance -- are applied to recent and contemporary phenomena from the Civil Rights and Free Speech movements to the Arab Spring, Occupy, and Black Lives Matter. In the course of this, both dimensions of analysis are continuously related to the ways in which resistance is theorized and, especially, practically aimed at in the field of arts: Drawing on texts by Peter Weiss, Hito Steyerl, or Astra Taylor and on works by Vallie Export, Marina Abramovic, Banksy, or the Zoo Project, selected aesthetic forms and artistic practices are examined with respect to their specific role and potential in processes of resistance.

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