The legacy of May 68 and the question of democratic agency: Lefort versus Gauchet

One feature that is commonly associated with the legacy of May 68 is the contestation of authority which it provoked. Of course, in democratic societies those in power could always be challenged to some extent. But since the late 1960s power and authority were arguably challenged to a much higher degree than before, not just in politics but also in the wider society. This, then, prompts the question what forms of contestation serve democratic societies and what forms are unhealthy. Are there criteria that allow us to identify problematic forms of contestation, and if so, what are they? In this paper I will answer this question by looking at two French theorists of democracy who witnessed the May events firsthand and who reflected on its legacy: Claude Lefort and one of his most important former disciples, Marcel Gauchet