Der Goldne Spiegel: Zoopolitik und ‚gehorsame Handlungsmacht‘ im Staatsroman

Obedience and agency are key concepts in Enlightenment political theory. In many cases they are conceptualized with zoopolitical metaphors. The man-animal divide is a crucial element that shapes the politics of the Enlightenment. In this article, after a brief introduction into Rousseau’s zoopolitical thinking, a debate on politics between Christoph Martin Wieland and Johann Heinrich Jacobi will show how animal metaphors are a latent feature of the popular Enlightenment of this era. After that, it is argued that Wieland’s novel Der Goldne Spiegel oder die Könige von Scheschian is able to shed light on the mechanics of zoopolitical thinking. This novel offers virulent narratives that connect animality, anthropology, and politics. Using techniques of multiperspectival narration, Der Goldne Spiegel can at the same time be read as revealing the aporia of Enlightenment zoopolitics.