Elettra Stimilli

Eletra Stimilli
Occupation(s)	Philosopher, academic and author
Academic background
Education	Ph.D., Philosophy
Alma mater	University of Macerata University of Salerno
Academic work
Institutions	La Sapienza University of Rome

Elettra Stimilli is an Italian philosopher, academic and author. She is a professor of Theoretical Philosophy in the Department of Philosophy at the La Sapienza University of Rome.

Stimilli is known for her extensive body of works on the connection between politics and religion, with an emphasis on contemporary thought. Notably, her authored works includes essays that have been published in leading academic journals, including European Journal of Social Theory and Deleuze and Guattari Studies as well as books such as Jacob Taubes. Sovranità e tempo messianico.

Academic background

Stimilli's academic background and contributions have established her as a prominent figure in contemporary philosophical discourse.

Works

Stimilli's work primarily explores the connections between religion, philosophy, and politics, with a particular focus on the relationship between contemporary Italian thought and the latest developments in French and German philosophy. Her monograph on Jacob Taubes explored his life, key relationships, and contributions to theological and political thought, particularly focusing on messianism, secularization, and Western eschatology in the context of 20th-century cultural experiences.

Stimilli’s research has also explored the intersection of economics and religion, particularly analyzing debt from a philosophical perspective. Her book The Debt of the Living: Ascesis and Capitalism examined how the concept of debt, reinterpreted as a form of self-imposed discipline and perpetual guilt, underpins capitalist economies and drives contemporary consumption behaviors. Additionally, her other book Debt and Guilt explored the psychological and philosophical foundations of austerity policies, arguing that they were rooted in notions of guilt and punishment, and examined their impact on contemporary politics, economics, and individual inner lives. More recently, with her book Filosofia dei mezzi, she began a philosophical reflection on bodies as political means, making explicit the feminist point of view of her investigation. Furthermore, she has given guest lectures at various institutions across the globe, including Warwick University, Lancaster University, Oxford Brookes University and University of Chicago.

Awards and honors

• 2021 – Italian Studies Article Prize, The Society for Italian Studies

Bibliography

Books

• The Debt of the Living: Ascesis and Capitalism (2017) ISBN 9781438464152
• Jacob Taubes. Sovranità e tempo messianico (2019) ISBN 978-8837233242

Selected articles

• Stimilli, E. (2019). Religion and the spontaneous order of the market: law, freedom, and power over lives. European Journal of Social Theory, 22(3), 399-415.
• Stimilli, E. (2020). Debt economy and faith. Philosophy in Contemporary Age. DIACRITICS, 2(47).
• Stimilli, E. (2022). Jacob Taubès: Messianism and political theology after the Shoah. In Depeche Mode. Jacob Taubès between Politics, Philosophy, and Religion (pp. 68-81). Brill.
• Stimilli, E. (2023). Pastoral Power and Revolution: Beyond Secularization and Political Theology. Theory, Culture & Society, 02632764231203572.