Critical Theory of Mathematics

The application of Critical Theory to mathematics—examining how mathematical knowledge is constructed, how it's used, and how it reflects and reinforces power. Critical Theory of Mathematics asks: Is mathematics universal, or is it culturally specific? How has mathematics been used to justify racism (intelligence testing), colonialism (surveying), and exploitation (algorithmic oppression)? Who gets to be a mathematician, and who's excluded? Drawing on ethnomathematics, critical math education, and postcolonial theory, it insists that mathematics is never just numbers—it's a human activity, shaped by history, culture, and power.

"Math is universal, they say. Critical Theory of Mathematics asks: universal for whom? Developed where? The math taught in schools is one tradition among many—and it's been used to measure skulls, justify eugenics, design weapons. Math isn't neutral; it's a tool. Critical theory insists on asking: who uses this tool, and for what?"

by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal March 4, 2026

Critical Theory of Earth Sciences

The application of Critical Theory to earth sciences—examining how knowledge of the planet is shaped by power, politics, and economics, and how it might serve ecological justice. Critical Theory of Earth Sciences asks: Who funds earth science? For what purposes? How do corporate and state interests shape climate research, resource extraction, and environmental policy? Whose knowledge of the Earth is valued, whose ignored? Drawing on environmental justice and postcolonial science studies, it insists that earth sciences are never just about the planet—they're about who gets to study it, who benefits from that knowledge, and who pays.

"Earth science just studies the planet, they say. Critical Theory of Earth Sciences asks: studies it for whom? Oil companies fund geology to find more oil; climate science is suppressed when it threatens profit. Earth science is political. Critical theory insists on asking: whose Earth is being studied, and for whose benefit?"

by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal March 4, 2026

Critical Theory of Market

The application of Critical Theory to markets—examining how markets are constructed, how they operate, and how they concentrate power and produce inequality. Critical Theory of Market asks: What is a market, really? Is it natural or created? Who has power within markets? How do markets produce winners and losers? What's hidden by the idea of "free" markets? Drawing on Marx, Polanyi, and economic sociology, it insists that markets are never just exchanges—they're social institutions, shaped by power, law, and history. Understanding markets requires understanding who they serve.

"Markets are just supply and demand, they say. Critical Theory of Market asks: supply controlled by whom? Demand shaped by what? Markets aren't natural; they're created by laws, enforced by states, shaped by power. Some enter markets with capital, others with only their labor. The market isn't neutral; it's a battlefield. Critical theory insists on asking: who wins, who loses, and who wrote the rules?"

by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal March 4, 2026

Critical Theory of Society

The application of Critical Theory to society itself—examining how social structures are organized, how power operates, and how society might be transformed. Critical Theory of Society asks: What is society? How is it held together? Who benefits from current arrangements? How do institutions, ideologies, and practices reproduce inequality? What would a free, just society look like? Drawing on the entire critical theory tradition from Marx to the Frankfurt School to contemporary thought, it insists that society is never just "the way things are"—it's a product of history, a site of struggle, and a project of transformation. Understanding society requires understanding its contradictions—and acting on them.

"That's just how society works, they say. Critical Theory of Society asks: says who? Society isn't natural; it's made. The way things are isn't the way they have to be. Critical theory insists on asking: who benefits from this arrangement? Who suffers? And what would it take to build something better? Not just understanding the world, but changing it."

by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal March 4, 2026

Critical Theory of Power

The application of Critical Theory to power itself—examining how power operates, how it's concentrated, how it's legitimated, and how it might be transformed. Critical Theory of Power asks: What is power? Who has it? How is it exercised—through force, through consent, through ideology? How do institutions, discourses, and practices produce and reproduce power relations? Drawing on thinkers like Marx, Weber, Foucault, and Arendt, it insists that power is never just domination—it's also productive, creative, diffuse. Power shapes what we can do, who we can be, what we can imagine. Understanding power requires understanding its multiple forms, its hidden operations, and its possibilities for resistance and transformation.

"Power is just who's in charge, they say. Critical Theory of Power asks: is it? Power is also in the rules, the norms, the language—in what's thinkable and what's not. The boss has power, but so does the system that makes bosses necessary. Critical theory insists on asking: how does power work when no one's giving orders? And how can we build power that liberates rather than dominates?"

by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal March 4, 2026

Critical Theory of Reality

The application of Critical Theory to reality itself—examining how our sense of what's real is shaped by power, culture, and history. Critical Theory of Reality asks: What is reality? Who gets to define it? How do dominant groups impose their reality on others? How have claims about "the way things are" served to naturalize inequality and foreclose alternatives? Drawing on social constructionism, phenomenology, and critical epistemology, it insists that reality is never just "out there"—it's always interpreted, always mediated, always political. Understanding reality requires understanding who gets to say what's real.

"Just face reality, they say. Critical Theory of Reality asks: whose reality? The reality of the powerful looks different from the reality of the oppressed. What's 'common sense' to some is absurd to others. Reality isn't fixed; it's fought over. Critical theory insists on asking: who benefits from this version of reality, and what realities are being erased?"

by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal March 4, 2026

Critical Theory of Might

The application of Critical Theory to might—the power of force, coercion, and violence—examining how might is used, justified, and resisted. Critical Theory of Might asks: What is might? How does it relate to right? How do those with might justify their dominance? How does might shape society, politics, and everyday life? Drawing on thinkers from Thucydides to contemporary critics of state violence, it insists that might is never just force—it's always accompanied by stories that make it seem legitimate, necessary, inevitable. Understanding might requires understanding how it's legitimated—and how it might be challenged.

"Might makes right, they say. Critical Theory of Might asks: says who? The powerful always have stories to justify their power. The strong claim they protect the weak; the violent claim they keep order. Might isn't right—it's just might. Critical theory insists on asking: who benefits from the story that might equals right? And what would justice look like without that story?"

by Abzugal Nammugal Enkigal March 4, 2026