Pharmacopornographic regime: control of the body and the subjectivity in the new capitalist era

Abstract

This paper studies the contributions and limitations of the concept «pharmacopornographic regime» proposed by Paul B. Preciado along with the two elements that constitute it: the pharmaceutical control and pornographic control. The analysis will be complemented with the contributions of other authors, especially those of Judith Butler - a reference philosopher for the author - whose theories about gender and body have indisputably influenced subsequent research on the subject of identity. Throughout the study of the thoughts of these two authors, it will be possible to reach a better understanding of what Paul B. Preciado calls «pharmacopornocapitalism» and also settle the contributions and limits of the author’s theory.

His work has been indisputably revolutionary in the matter of gender and identity, bring into question naturalized categories and exhibiting the biopolitical, oppressive and discriminatory dynamics that embody our existence. Recognizing this, we must also consider the limits of his approach, where sometimes the provocation leads him to affirmations that differ from the final objective of his theory: to show how the control acts on bodies and to find a way out of it.