A theoretical attempt to locate the concept of 'interest' within discourse theory: Understanding Turkish and Spanish political parties' subject positions and interests vis-à-vis 'Europe'

(Basak Zeynep Alpan, University of Birmingham)

Departing from the Laclau-Mouffean discourse theory's premise that there is not a homogenous subject with an essential and unchanged identity and the subjects have to position themselves within the given discourse, the paper tries to understand the extent to which the discourse on 'Europe' and the subsequent subject positions formed vis-à-vis the concept are instrumental or relevant to understand the 'interests' of the actors, political parties in particular. The recent discussions on the concept of 'interest' stipulate that it is perceptions of interests rather than interests per se that motivate behaviour, and whether such perceptions are in principle subject to the influence of others though persuasion, socialisation, manipulation and/or indoctrination in relation to the third dimension of power which assumes that the power might be about the ability to shape an agent's preferences or perceptions of their 'real interests' (Lukes, 1974) where the real interests of the actors are not self-evident as such. When this premise is applied to the use of the concept of 'Europe', the resulting question becomes whether there is a relationship, continuity and discontinuity between the perceived interests of Turkish and Spanish political parties and the Euro-discourses articulated and the subject positions taken vis-à-vis the notion of 'Europe', which forms the core quest of this paper.