General economy
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General economy (original French: l'économie générale) is a concept by French philosopher Georges Bataille’s concept of general economy, propounded most systematically in The Accursed Share, in which he opposes general and restricted economies, centering around the notion of excess. The concept was brought to international attention by Jacques Derrida in his 1967 article on Bataille entitled From Restricted to General Economy: A Hegelianism without Reserve.
The notion of "excess" energy is central to Bataille's thinking. Bataille's inquiry takes the superabundance of energy, beginning from the infinite outpouring of solar energy or the surpluses produced by life's basic chemical reactions, as the norm for organisms. In other words, an organism in Bataille's general economy, unlike the rational actors of classical economy who are motivated by scarcity, normally has an "excess" of energy available to it. This extra energy can be used productively for the organism's growth or it can be lavishly expended on art, luxury, war or non-reproductive sex. Bataille insists that an organism's growth or expansion always runs up against limits and becomes impossible. The wasting of this energy is "luxury". The form and role luxury assumes in a society are characteristic of that society. "The accursed share" refers to this excess, destined for waste.
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