The article analyzes the affective structure of neoliberal capitalism, which is characterized by the dominant affect of anxiety. This differentiates neoliberalism from earlier periods, which were dominated by the reactive affects of misery and boredom. Anxiety is theorized as an affect of social mechanisms, with precarity being a notable example. The existing social movement strategies and pedagogical approaches are inadequate in this context, as they are primarily designed to combat earlier forms of reactive affect. The anxiety-induced loss of political power could be surmounted by spreading awareness among the people who live in a precarious position and by creating a “machine” to fight anxiety.
