ship-of-state-metaphor

The chapter explores the metaphor of the ship as a symbol of political organization, authority, and technical expertise throughout history, from Plato's technocratic captain to democratic and emancipatory interpretations. It highlights how the ship metaphor embodies themes of authority, expertise, automation, and global relations, while emphasizing the undetermined relationship between technology and politics. The chapter concludes by proposing the ship of state as an interface of technology and politics, focusing on identifying and sorting practices, and introduces the concept of the ear as a stable yet evolving element in political and legal identification.

The chapter examines the global standardization of political identification technologies through the metaphor of the 'ship of state,' highlighting the challenges posed by digital power's homogenizing effects on political subjectivity and the limitations of traditional resistance methods. It critiques the concept of informational self-determination as insufficient in the digital era and proposes the principle of 'nymity'—a right to own and control personal data and self-representation—as a necessary framework for privacy and resistance, supported by emerging legal and institutional practices.